Our Students

Colin’s Story

Our son Colin (above right, with his brother) was diagnosed with autism when he was fifteen months old. The summer before he started at Garden Academy, Colin was out in the backyard playing. I turned my back for what seemed like just a few seconds and he was gone. He had squeezed through a small gap in the fence and disappeared into the woods near our house.

I had to call 911 and after they searched for about 20 minutes the police found Colin, playing happily near a small creek. That was not the first time Colin had run off — it had happened before.

Because of his behavior and because Colin did not understand danger, simple everyday things like getting in and out of the car in a parking lot were terrifying. If felt like at any second we could be faced with a tragedy. There just did not seem to be enough fences, locks and alarms to make the world a safe place for Colin.

In truth, though, children like Colin don’t need better fences, they need programs like the one provided by Garden Academy.

Thanks to Garden Academy Colin no longer runs off when he’s in the yard or when he’s getting out of the car in a parking lot. He follows the directions we need him to for us to safely make it through the day. Colin is also learning to control the pervasive and often extreme behavioral patterns that so dramatically impact the lives of children with autism. For us, that means we can now attend Church as a family, something we were unable to do before.

Before Colin started at Garden Academy we did not have any photos of our two boys together smiling. To us and our family, photos like the one on the top of this page are among the most precious Christmas presents of all.

Mariann and Gerry
(Colin’s parents)