Be the Change

In case you haven't heard, April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day. That means you'll be be hearing a lot about autism in the next few days -- and hopefully weeks, as technically the entire month of April is Autism Awareness Month.

Here's the deal: 1 in every 150 children has an autism spectrum disorder. There is no cure, but treatment has been shown to help. 

If you aren't personally affected by autism, I'd like you to imagine the following: You've been told that your precious child has a brain disorder. You've been told that it affects every person differently. And you've been told that it's lifelong. Then you're told that no one knows what causes it. 

Autism is estimated to affect 35 million people worldwide and we have no idea what causes it. We need answers. To get those answers, we need more funding for research. Here's where you come in. 

Autism Speaks is raising awareness and money for autism research with its "Walk Now for Autism Virtual Walk." It's all the fundraising without all the pesky walking. In honor of my little genius who happens to also have autism, I have started my own team, appropriately named "Team Owen," and I'm hoping we can raise $1000. It's not much, but it's something. You can join my team or start your own. 

Please pass this on to anyone else you know that can help. Even if they don't give, at least you'll be helping to raise awareness. And as my autism mama hero Judith says on her blog, Autismville: "Awareness brings understanding. Understanding fosters change."

These kids can't raise the money themselves, people. Let's go.