WIZARD MODE is the story of Robert Gagno as he rises up the ranks of the international pinball circuit while striving to gain his independence and transcend the label of autism. This is a short film version of our debut feature length documentary of the same name. The Wizard Mode team is raising funds through…
When I lived in China, I became intimately aware of what it was like to feel isolated. It’s not that I was alone, in fact, I had about 18 million people surrounding me. Regardless of the new friends I was making, the amazing foods I was trying and the wonders of being able to explore…
In the weeks leading up to April 2, 2013, I thought long and hard about the idea of having “the talk” with my son, Lucius. I wondered how he was going to feel when I explained autism to him. I weighed whether introducing his diagnosis to him, at age six, or waiting until he got…
A father and his daughter got on the subway yesterday. She was young and in pigtails and she had autism. He held her tiny backpack between his knees as he fished his phone out for her. As he tapped on his phone, the familiar strains of angry birds began to play and a wide smile…
Thankfully “Odin’s Story” went viral and social media gave a real problem the attention it deserves! For those who aren’t aware, Odin Camus is a 13 year old boy from Peterborough who has Asperger’s Syndrome (on the Autism Spectrum) and struggles with bullying and being ostracized by his peers. Last weekend, he invited friends to…
Today is my son’s 22nd birthday. Matthew is a handsome, blonde, blue-eyed, tall young man. Matthew also has autism. He is non-verbal, needs 1:1 support, has had behavioural isses throughout his life, and will always require support. He does not understand the dangers that you and I do – stopping and looking before crossing the…
From the Blog “Alex and Autism” No story is more “Alex” to me than the one I often repeat about the boys in the beer store. When Alex was about 6 years of age he and I and his sister, who was 4 at the time, stopped by the beer store on our way home….
Our family joined Autism Ontario in 1993, twenty years after it began and shortly after our daughter Grace was diagnosed with autism. Our membership number was 109, hinting at the humble beginnings of this organization at the half-way point in its history. But that was also a different time: when Grace was diagnosed, we were…