Autism Conference- Don’t Miss It!

The 12th National Conference and 2nd Southeast Asian Conference on Autism will be held on April 28 & 29, 2012 at Crown Plaza Manila Galleria, Ortigas Ave. corner ADB Avenue, Quezon City.

See you there!

Small Steps, Big Leaps

I wanted to postpone putting up this post until I could get a decent shot of Alphonse applying for the benefits due to him courtesy of the amended Magna Carta for Disabled Persons (RA 9442 amending RA 7277). I’ve been thinking about it for forever, setting the shot in my head, but you all know the rest of the story.

It’s been more than year since Alphonse received his National Council on Disability Affairs- Quezon City ID (NCDA-QC) and the booklet that comes with it for purchases of basic goods and medicine.While we have been able to use it sometimes, more often than not, this card carried no real weight in many establishments for services he needed. For example, when Alphonse was confined at a private hospital in February of this year, we inquired on the application of the discounts and were told that the hospital did not honor disability benefits.

Still, I feel it would be a disservice to many if I put off the news any longer, considering how many people do not know that these things even exist for our children. As a country that prides itself in acceptance and compassion for the differently-abled, we are sorely lacking in services for these sectors of our society. Public schools that should, by law, cater to special needs children lack funding for appropriate classrooms, teachers, and materials for teaching. There is no nationally mandated early intervention program for children with special needs, and beyond the middle school years, we have little or no programs for adolescents and adults to transition them from school to workplace. I’ve said this over and over again and I am beginning to sound like a broken record: autism awareness is an important issue but the advocacy must be greater than this. We must work for real, tangible help that can be felt across the spectrum of our children’s disabilities rather than work solely on public relations and feel-good movements.

When we applied for the ID and the purchase booklet in our city government office last year on behalf of our son, we received them within the day. That was the good news. The bad news was the only places we could count on to honor them are the SM Malls’ supermarket chains and their mall-based drugstores, Watson’s. Thirty pesos saved here and there may be little to some, but to many parents who shoulder the entire expense of their children’s needs, it adds up in the long run. I only wish more companies would follow suit.

Then too, a few days ago, my friend M told me that McDonald’s honors her son’s ID and gives them a discount for his food. One of these days, when Alphonse is up to it, perhaps we might just give it a try and check it out for ourselves. Would Jollibee be as accommodating too?

Just recently, we got wind of more good news via Autism Society Philippines.

1. The establishments of more chapter organizations of the ASP (50 at last count) herald an unprecedented rise in awareness and autism activism within the country.
2. Learning software from Vizzle Technology has found its way to two public schools in Manila that offer special education to 400 high needs children; this is a praiseworthy initiative from Globe Communications, the Department of Education and ASP which would benefit the least economically able of our children.
3. Perhaps most significant of all the news is that Mercury Drug Corporation, the largest drug store chain in the country, will finally honor disability discounts effective May 1 of this year. Our thanks to our advocates in government for this: Cong. Arturo Robles, the House of Representatives Commission on Social Services, and Cong. Walden Bello of AKBAYAN.Finally, we see our government working for us. Hats off to all the advocates of the disability sector- without your voices, our children would not be heard.

These are truly welcome developments for families with autism and other disabilities. The news about Mercury Drug pleased me most, of course. I even danced a small jig when I read about that one. Congratulations to ASP and to all of us!

Allow me to quibble, however, on something that bothered me as I read ASP’s post. I am not ungrateful but I do have to take exception with the way ASP says “Autism education issues are finally resolved” or “Autism health issues are finally realized,” for these imply a certain end and finality to all these specific disability issues. Perhaps a better way would be to say that autism issues are finally getting recognized, that we are finally getting heard.

The truth is we are nowhere near the finish line when it comes to disability issues. Even as we resolve old ones, new ones come along, brought about by our children’s growth, their different needs at different times in their lives, the different levels of functionality in the spectrum, and even changes in the state of the world. While I laud ASP for their victories and hard work, I must exhort them NOW to move with greater speed, with a stronger impetus, and with an even bigger vision for our children. Only if we seize the momentum today and take the little steps that make these big changes can there be a real future for all our children.

Want Prizes?

Today, I was looking at the entries to the Okasaneko Chronicles’ 3rd Blog Birthday Giveaways and I was very pleased to see the numbers growing. You can still join until November 14. The contest ends one second before midnight of the 15th, so any entry received until 11:59:59 pm of November 14 is still valid.

I noticed, however, that there have been some confusion on where to post and what to post, and since we’re all friends here, let’s just say I ♥ you all and forgive the little mistakes. If you took the time out to visit this blog, write a comment, and leave your well wishes on this blog, as long as you indicate that ”I want to win in Okasaneko Chronicles’ 3rd blog Birthday Giveaway,” you’ve got one entry for the raffle drum.

To make things clearer, however, let me point out some more helpful tips for posting and re-posting.

1. Comments must be left on the blog entry “Now 16, Forever Sweet.”  
2. For FB postings, please make sure that your FB status post is viewable and please put the link in the comments box of  “Now 16, Forever Sweet.”
3. To  blog about the contest, I ask that you link the Official Giveaway Rules and include the picture with our blog giveaways sponsors (see below). You can resize the picture if it’s too big.

I do have pictures to upload now so if you want any of of these prizes, then, join, join, JOIN!!! I hope these whet your appetite to win freebies!

One winner will receive this very helpful Autism Society Philippines Directory of Resources, which lists down all available schools, therapists, and other professionals, for children with autism. This comes with a bright neon green angel baller band, also courtesy of ASP.  (Note: Because this book will be of greatest use to those in the country, raffle of this prize is limited to local readers only.)

Two winners will win a set each of this lovely charm bracelet with enamel autism and puzzle charms, an enamel autism awareness pin, and a “I ♥ someone with autism” badge pin featuring Alphonse’s brother Alex as a cutie ten-month-old doing a kissy face. These are all courtesy of Alphonse (amd Alphonse’s mama!).

And to Sylvanian fans out there, or simply anyone who wants to see what Sylvanian Families are like,

Ban Kee Trading, exclusive distributor of Sylvanian Families in the Philippines, will be giving away these prizes to four lucky winners! Two will receive a box each of  the 25th Anniversary Limited Edition Baby Students and two will each receive a furniture set with a Limited Edition 25th Anniversary Forest Fairy key fob. Absolutely divine!

So, far, we have 12 prizes up for grabs! What are you waiting for? Join, join, JOIN!!!

The State of Autism in the Philippines

Originally published in Herword.com on November 2, 2010

I write this in honor of a person with autism, Alphonse Cuaycong, who is  sixteen this November.

Every year, on the third week of January, autism awareness comes to forefront in the nation’s priorities as we celebrate Autism Consciousness Week. World Autism Awareness Day, celebrated on April 2 of each year in perpetuity, furthers this cause by linking nations in efforts to bring awareness to a condition that breaches global barriers, race, gender, religion, and social status.

Autism awareness in the country has grown by leaps and bounds, thanks largely to the untiring and continuing hard work of Autism Society Philippines. They knock on doors previously closed to all our children. They create buzz for activities meant to highlight our children’s contributions to society. They work on information and education and early diagnosis. They do all that and more, motivated solely by altruistic concerns and a genuine love for our children.

And yet, despite their unending efforts to get heard, be seen, be known, be taken seriously, there remains a real disparity between awareness and action, between theoretical ideas and words and what exists out there in the real world. Let me state for the record that I hold the society in highest esteem and I do not mean to belittle their successes. The truth is, without Autism Society Philippines, the agenda of autism in the country would have remained in the back burners forever. Autism would just be another dirty little secret, hidden behind closed doors, locked away in dark attics, whispered but never seriously discussed. It is to their credit that autism has broken down some walls in our society — some, but not all. And this is where the gap begins.

With the uncertain prospects of the economic downturn, many countries with state- or nationally-funded programs for autism and other disabilities have been drastically cutting back on costs, shortening the lives of essential programs, or discontinuing them altogether. I have seen and heard how parents continue to fight for their children’s rights and while I am deeply sympathetic to their plight, I do not fully comprehend the depth of their loss or their anguish. In my country, we all live with the certainty that integral programs for the education of children with disabilities will long remain a pipe dream

We do not lack laws that protect and promote the rights of our children; on the contrary, we have some of the best ones. There’s RA 232, called the Education Act of 1982 which was enacted on September 11, 1982. The law mandates that “the State shall promote the right of every individual to relevant quality education, regardless of sex, age, creed, socio-economic status, physical and mental conditions, racial or ethnic origin, political or other affiliation. The State shall therefore promote and maintain equality of access to education as well as the enjoyment of the benefits of education by all its citizens.”

Even without it, however, our Constitution and Bill of Rights guarantee this very same right, that “the State shall protect and promote the rights of all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all” and that “the State shall provide adult citizens, the disabled, the out-of-school-youth with training in civics, vocational efficiency and other skills.” Furthermore, the Constitution states that “the State shall adopt an integrated and comprehensive approach to health development which shall endeavor to make essential goods, health and other social services available to all people at affordable costs. There shall be priority for the needs of the underprivileged sick, elderly, disabled, women and children.”

We also have the Magna Carta for Disabled Persons or RA 7277, signed into law on March 24, 1992 by then President Corazon Aquino. In itself, it is a beautiful law, one that sought to provide persons with disabilities the same rights enjoyed by their able counterparts — education, employment, health and social services. Making it even more significant, this was later amended by RA 9442 in April of 2007, and by virtue of this amendment, provisions of the original law were expanded to include fully realizable economic privileges such as discount for food and medicines, health care, transportation and education. These are meant to provide economic respite to many parents who support their children with disabilities without any state or local government funding.

But the reality is this: public education in the Philippines, while well-meaning and well-intentioned, is a mendicant policy, a victim of poor prioritization in a budget inflated with pork barrel and ridden with corruption. There are not enough classrooms for all the children. There are not enough books, and if there were, their quality is poor. There are not enough good teachers and certainly not enough teacher training to ensure that someone like comedian Melissa Cantiveros of PBB fame, a teacher in her home town, is proficient in the subject she has been chosen to teach (in her case, English).

If public education as a governmental policy is already ranked low in the state’s priorities, then consider how low special education is regarded in the very same totem pole. Most local governments have little or no funding for special programs. The laws are there, alright, but the money isn’t. There are no early intervention classrooms for children diagnosed early, except a few in private schools or institutions. Public special education teachers in the country work against lack of money for materials, lack of a good classrooms to integrate smooth working spaces for the children, and lack of manpower and help. If these classes survive at all, it is because of the guts and determination of these individuals — these heroes — who have put a stake in our children’s education and wellbeing.

Private special education, on the other hand, costs an arm and a leg and is usually out of the reach of the common people. The quality of education and programs offered also vastly differ from one school to another, from one program to another. Some are good, some are bad; all need lots of money. Moreover, private special schools, as our own experience has taught us, may turn your child away, something that we once thought was impossible in the setting of special education. Low-functioning kids are also at a disadvantage as private programs for adolescents favor those with higher-functioning skills.

Money, or the lack of it, remains only part of the problem. Political will is another. The Magna Carta for Disabled Persons provides this sector with financial help in the form of discounts, and even with the law, sometimes, these discounts are difficult to obtain (especially when it comes to medicines). The Implementing Rules and Regulations took their sweet time in coming, and even with the touted reforms in the way disability is viewed and treated in the country, this has yet to be fully translated into real life. The good news is that spurred by the National Council on Disability Affairs, many local governments have taken their own initiatives in making this law bear fruit. In our city, Alphonse has received his purchase booklet for basic goods and services, along with his National Council on Disability Affairs identification card.

And there are still dreams that will need more time to come to complete fruition: a year after the first sensory-friendly movie in September, what we have still are token showings on special occasions, and not the kind of inclusive, sensory-friendly and regular screenings we always dreamt of.

Still, I remain positive and hopeful that one day soon, children like Alphonse will finally get a fair shake in this society. Fourteen and a half years after diagnosis, my son has yet to fully experience the benefits of the laws set to safeguard his rights. Then again, perhaps the change may not even come within his time. Yet as long as we start to take the little steps to correcting these, as long as we remain vigilant and persistent, as long as we continue to fight for the rights of the more than half a million Filipinos with autism, hand in hand with Autism Society Philippines, perhaps that day may not be too long in coming.

I have great hope.

Official Giveaway Rules

As promised, here are the mechanics for the3rd OC Blog Birthday Giveaway. 

Contest Duration: This contest will start on November 3, 2010 12:00:00 midnight and end on November 14, 2010, 11:59:59 pm.

Eligibility:

1. The raffle for Hello Kitty, Sylvanian Families, and Alphie’s Autism Awareness gift packs items is open to ALL readers, both local and international, of this blog.
2. Due to the nature of the other gift items, the raffle for these prizes will be open ONLY to readers with local addresses.

How to Enter:

There are three ways to join the contest:

1. Leave a comment in tomorrow’s blog post with your name and e-mail address. For posters outside the Philippines, please indicate your country of origin in the comments box.  Start your comment with “I want to win in Okasaneko Chronicles 3rd Blog Birthday Giveaway.”  Only one comment per e-mail entry is allowed. Repeated postings will not earn additional raffle entries.
2. Blog about this contest and link your post to the URL of this page. Please include the Blog Giveaway photo featuring our sponsors which will appear in tomorrow’s post. Leave a comment here with a link to your post.
3. Share the giveaway contest with your friends in Facebook. Don’t forget to share the link of this post in your status message. Leave a comment here with the URL of your message so I can verify. Make sure the post is set to public so I can view it.

Each of these methods earns one raffle entry; do all three and get three raffle entries to increase your chances of winning.

Winner Selection:

1. The raffle will be held in two parts- one for local readers and another for both local and international readers. You may win more than once so it pays to increase your chances of winning.  
2. Winners will be determined using a raffle drum. The drawing of prizes will be held on November 15, 2010.

Winner Notification: The names of winners will be announced in a separate post within three days of the draw. An e-mail message will also be sent to the winners to notify them.

Claiming Your Prize: Please respond to the e-mail notification right away so the prize can be shipped to you promptly. Shipping of prizes will be shouldered by Okasaneko Chronicles.  

As of this writing, I have 12 confirmed gift packs for the raffle but who knows? I may be able to add some more (crossing my fingers)! So hurry and join; you have exactly eleven days to enjoy this contest. GOOD  LUCK!

Countdown to November

As November approaches, Alphonse senses something special is coming up and acts giddy and excited. It doesn’t hurt that another long break is overdue, what with the All Saints’ Day/All Souls’ Day holidays coinciding with most schools’ semestral break. Despite Alphonse’s lack of knowledge and concern about dates, he gets a lot of cues from the people around him and instinctively anticipates the coming days.

I can’t help but feel giddy as well. The OC (short for Okasaneko Chronicles, but funny how it simply dawned on me now that another form of OC is perfectly apt for me- obssessive compulsive, heehee) 3rd Blog Birthday Giveaways will be starting on November 3  and all the people I’ve asked for support has responded very favorably. Even HerWord.com, BusinessWorld’s e-zine for women, is sending a gift for giveaway! Yippee!  The mechanics will be up very soon so please watch out this week for more news on the giveaway.

To get Alphonse prepped for his birthday road trip, we started him on short trips again. His behavior looks very promising. He has been very well behaved on our short trips and save for some minor shouting (he does love his verbal stims), there have been no major problems with grabbing or running away. Two weeks ago, at the grocery store, Alphonse wanted to ride the shopping cart the way he used to when he was a small child. I can’t help but smile when I remember how he took off his size 8 shoes and tried to lift one leg to put inside the large shopping cart. He’s almost five feet five inches now so the sight of him inside one can’t be considered cute anymore. Good thing he’s very pliable these days and we were able to convince him to walk with us instead.

Yesterday was another holiday because of the local barangay elections. Taking advantage of another free day, we decided to start Alphonse’s day with a visit to Granny Flower’s ossuary (Granny Flower is A’s mom).

Then it was off to  my Mom and Dad’s house for a visit. We didn’t stay too long, though. We wanted to give him an hour or two at the mall before it was overrun with people.  We also wanted to tire him out by walking the stretch of the SM North EDSA Sky Garden’s 400-meter covered walk way.

Alphonse was met with a lot of curious stares as his dad and big brother held his hands while walking. He didn’t seem to mind the gawking; in fact, he had a ready smile for everyone he crossed paths with.

He fell in love with this overgrown pumpkin decoration and sat down and fiddled with it before we could entice him to walk again. He even laid down a few seconds on the grass right beside it.

But we made sure to keep our promise of afternoon merienda (snack). Food is always a highlight of any trip for him and he loves Ineng’s succulent pork barbecue on a stick. He had one while sitting, another one while walking back to the car, and a third one inside the car. When we got home, he ate two more! This boy can definitely eat!

It doesn’t take much to make him happy, as you can see.  We didn’t even have to spend for anything other than food. At yet, at the end of the day,  you can tell by his smiles and kisses that he absolutely loves these mini-dates. Here’s crossing our fingers he’ll love our birthday surprise for him!

Birthdays and Giveaways

Alphonse will turn 16 in a little less than two weeks. Birthdays are fun but it’s always been difficult finding presents for him. Unlike your typical teenager, Alphonse wants little and needs so little to make him happy that often, we end up with such unimaginative presents of … you guessed right… underwear, shoes, and clothes. We can’t ask him what he wants when his default answer is “yes” to everything (when he says “No” you know he means it, whereas “Yes” can mean either) and Alex, his wily older brother, usually finds a way to twist this to his advantage.

Mama: Alphonse, do you want a new shirt?

Alphonse: (nods) Yes

Mama: Do you want new Crocs?

Alphonse: (nods) Yes

Alex: Wait, Mama, it’s my turn. Alphonse, do you want a new PS3?

Alphonse: (nods) Yes

Alex: See, Mama, you really have to get the PS3 for Alphonse. He really, really, really wants it! Please? Let’s buy the PS3 today!

(Nice try, son!)

Finding gifts Alphonse will genuinely love is always a challenge. These days, he’s still drawn to colorful preschool toys ; he actually sneaks off with his little three-year-old cousin’s toys every now and then. He still loves Disney DVDs despite our attempts to introduce him to other movies. And he is still absolutely, passionately crazy over bubbles. Running out of bubble solutions or bubble bottles will likely provoke a prolonged crying spell. We realize however that we can’t exactly keep encouraging him with these. While they remain part of his life, we have to keep looking at things and activities most neurotypical teenagers enjoy at that particular age. Unfortunately, that is easier said than done. Nothing seems to pop out as remotely interesting to him as the things he is already used to.

Alphonse's PECS card

So we racked our brains and discussed countless ideas, without ever coming to a united position on our special gift for Alphonse’s 16th birthday. But you know how the answers to prayers come when one least expects it? Just a few weeks ago, we had a lightbulb moment.  When Alphonse popped open one of the large covered pails of water we had and dove right in- head, shoulders, body, feet and all- we knew at once what we were getting him this year.

Just a brief backgrounder: Alphonse loves water but not the kind you swim in. He loves humongous basins and shallow pools  and garden hoses and sprinklers of all kinds but would not venture into any body of water higher than his knees. This past summer, on a family trip, we went to a hot springs resort and were suprised when, for the first time ever, he decided to step into the pool and submerge himself neck deep. Not only that, he half-walked, half-paddled the entire length of the small pool.  That he decided to stay submerged for almost a whole day told us that he finally found the courage to enjoy being in the water. Unfortunately, when night came, he wanted to go home and sleep in his own bed, though we had already paid for accommodations for the night. We tried to coax him to sleep but he cried loudly and refused to be appeased. We made the long drive back and once home, he promptly fell asleep. With that experience in mind, we promised him only day trips for now.

And that is what he is getting for his birthday- a day visit for a swimming party at the same resort. We’ve already made reservations. I only have to firm up the plans for food and extra amenities, get the swimsuits and swimming gear ready, get extra decorations, and we are ready to go!

~0~

While we’re on the topic of birthdays, next month, Okasaneko Chronicles on WordPress turns three years old.  To celebrate my blog’s third birthday and to thank all those who have supported my blog with their visits and comments, I will be hosting my first ever giveaway. Wheee! Who can resist giveaways?

For now, I have decided on giving away three different sets of gifts which reflect each of the different passions I write about in my blog- autism advocacy, Sanrio and Hello Kitty, and Sylvanian families. Yesterday, I received an e-mail confirmation from Ms. Isabel Lopez, Marketing Manager of Sanrio Gift Gate Philippines, of their very kind sponsorship of the Sanrio gift pack. I was amazed that within an hour of sending my e-mail request, Ms. Lopez replied with a positive confirmation. I will wait for further instructions from her, but already, I am beside myself with joy.

Autism Society Philippines, through the kindness of ASP Secretary Tiffany Tan, will also donate two items for the autism advocacy gift package. I won’t reveal yet what’s inside this gift pack but let me tell you that some of the gifts will come from Alphonse and myself.

I am still waiting for Ban Kee’s Mr. Joseph de Leon’s reply to my request. I am hopeful that with these two generous sponsors already committed to the giveaway, they will follow suit. I will keep you guys updated on this.

The ”I Am Three” Blog Giveaway will be launched very soon so please come back to this blog to get more details. As soon as the gift packs are all ready, I will post pictures and instructions on how to join. With two birthdays coming in November, it’s going to be a party!

P.S. Ban Kee said YES!!! It’s three for three!

To Stella, With Love

I found this in my comments box this morning when I logged in to check for messages. I thought Stella deserved a post of her own, so one hand less notwithstanding, I am posting a reply for her. (One easy thing about posts- one can always cut and paste, heehee. )

Stella’s note reads:

hi, got to read your blog when i was surfing for materials on autism. my six year old daughter was diagnosed with ASD when she was four. although, now she talks and reads very well, even advance of her age in her prep class, she has some of the behaviors you have mentioned in this article — she does not want a pony tail hair, or any hair accessories, does not like going to a parlor for a hair cut, prefers soft and cotton clothes….

i would appreciate if you can help me how to join the autism Society of the Philippines. I am basically living in Surigao City, Mindanao, Phils.

stella

Kittymama’s reply:

Dear Stella,

Thank you for visiting my blog. One of the reasons I keep doing this is that it helps me reach other people in my advocacy for autism. If even once in a while, a reader searching for information on autism stumbles into my blog, picks up a few things and is made all the better for it, then all these would have been worth it.

I hope this answers your query on joining the ASP. I’ve long held the belief that “Autism is not a boat for one.” We all need a little helping hand along the way, be it someone to talk to or even someone to ask questions of.  The world can be an open, encouraging place for parents like us looking for answers- if we only learn to ask. I am certainly happy you did.   

photo from http://upcat.up.edu.ph/htmls/mindanao.html

 Autism Society Philippines has 37 chapters all over the Philippines. Using this map I found via google search, I’ve highlighted the cities with ASP chapters in green to give all of us an idea of where these can be found in relation to your home city, Surigao City, which is highlighted in yellow. 

Below are the contact information for the different Mindanao chapters of ASP as listed in this ASP page.

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY
President: Ms. Angie R. Abellanosa
166 Villa de Oro Kauswagan
9000 Cagayan de Oro City
Tel No: (082) 3506288
Mobile No: 0921-5927742
Email: angie_abells@yahoo.com.ph

 

DAVAO CITY
President: Mr. Eric D. Dela Costa
13 Carnation Circle Ladislawa
Garden Village 8000 Davao City
Tel No: (082) 2278420
Fax No: (082) 2279609
Mobile No: 0917-9058739
Email: edc@alsonsproperties.com
Email: aspdavao@yahoo.com
Email: davaeno88@yahoo.com

 

GENERAL SANTOS CITY
Representative: Ms. Mira del Rosario
L5 B6 Pioneer Village, Lagao
9500 General Santos City
Tel No: (Res) (083) 553-1280

Tel No: (Off) (083) 302-6745
Fax No: (083) 380-7297
Mobile No: 0915-5598791
Email: msdrqa@mozcom.com

ILIGAN CITY
President: Mr. Miguel Y. Lasala III
III Cuadro Ocho, Inc.
Que Avenue Extension
9200 Iligan City
Telefax No: (063) 492-3873
Mobile No: 0917-7161254
Email: myl111_888@yahoo.com.ph

ZAMBOANGA CITY
President: Ms. Angeli Parmanand
315 Sta. Maria St.
7000 Zamboanga City
Tel No: (062) 993-1617
Mobile No: 0928-9633670
Email: angelieparmanand@yahoo.com

Hope these help you, Stella. I wish you and your daughter all the best,

♥Kittymama

Help Wanted

Have you ever seen a “help wanted” ad like this? I definitely have not, not even once in the many years I have spent perusing classified ads. But one day soon, and I hope this comes in my child’s lifetime, I certainly hope that someone somewhere will give my son and all individuals of special abilities this chance at marking their place in the world.

Employment. The dreaded E word. With our children growing fast into teens and adults and their parents growing old, we start to look forward to the future, and sadly, see little opportunities for professional or occupational growth for them. We spend our lives helping them learn and grow and thrive, only to find another seemingly insurmountable wall facing them. How many employers will take a chance on capable individuals who are judged solely based on diagnosis? How many businesses will risk the bottom line to wade into previously unknown waters?

Not very many.

True, individuals with autism fill the whole spectrum of abilities and dis-abilities, and as such, are not able to fit in typical workplaces. Yet, when one thinks of it, what must seem like a limitation in some settings may actually work in others. For example, your child’s rigidity and adherence to structure may work in some settings where rules are absolute and nonnegotiable; his obsessive eye for details may be a highly desirable attribute in work places that value a keen eye. Sometimes, too, his lack of social connectivity may be  advantageous in work that virtually isolates the individual and his fixation and fascination for specific things or issues may make him a veritable expert in the subject. Most importantly, however, many of our children possess distinct virtues that, in an ideal world, would be highly coveted- honesty (they do not lie or steal) and dependability being two of them.

As parents, caretakers, and teachers of our children, it is up to us to empower them with appropriate education, job matching, training, and support. It is up to us to set up the infrastructure that will enable them to become self-sustaining individuals, be it through employment or through entrepreneurship. It becomes our task, also, to educate employers and to assist them with mentoring our children. The key is to do so with an open, honest heart.

Only when we start to see past limitations and disabilities are we able to look forward to a future of a million possibilities.

Find out more what the future holds for your child in “Workers and Entrepreneurs for Autism,” Professor Archie David’s lecture on Day Two of the 11th National Conference on Autism. As founder and executive director of the Independent Living Learning Centre (ILLC) , Teacher Archie’s expertise in Occupational Therapy has helped shaped children’s lives through training and vocation.

Hurry and register now! Early Bird Rates have been extended until October 16, 2009.

Autism And The Movies: We Made History

Originally published in Herword.com on October 1, 2009

We woke up unusually early that day, excited and buoyant. Even Alphonse, who wakes up late most days, didn’t complain when we woke him up. “It’s your day, anak,” I whispered gently to this sleeping baby, all five feet and four inches of him. He stirred a little, blinked a few times, then jumped immediately upright like a coiled spring. Hand in hand, Alphonse and I danced happily, albeit gingerly, while I sang “I’ve got a feeling that today’s gonna be a good  day…” (to the tune of Black Eyed Peas’ “I’ve Got A Feeling”).

It was. On a cloudy, overcast Friday, a day before Typhoon Ondoy ravaged the city and made history, we made a different kind of history.

They say all big trees come from little seeds and in this instance, it started with a mother’s wish. In April of this year, a mother wrote “Autism and The Movies” for Herword.com; she cross posted this piece in her blog. In it, she voiced her dream of being able to see a movie with her son with autism even just once. She vowed to write letters to Autism Society Philippines and to cinemas around the city, but even before the first letters came out of her pen, she received a hopeful email from ASP’s President, Ms. Dang Koe. Ms. Koe wrote, “As you can see, our ASaP (ASP’s newsletter) Chief  Tiff (Tiffany Tan) follows your blog…How can we work on this? I’m a movie lover too, and would love Gio to watch with us.”

I am that mother.

ASP Pres Dang Koe with the valiant men of SM's Committee for Disability Affairs

But where I was thinking of a smaller test audience, Ms. Koe and  her colleagues at the ASP were already looking at the bigger picture. Within days, they had started corresponding with SM’s AVP for Operations and Chair of SM’s Committee for Disability Affairs, Engr. Bien Mateo. In a matter of months, they had worked out a plan for the first ever sensory-friendly cinema screening in the Philippines (or in Asia for that matter) for children with autism and other disabilities.

Alphonse at the movies

Sensory-friendly screenings are designed to minimize averse sensory experiences and maximize enjoyment. Low lights are left on during the show,  sound volume is reduced, and film previews are left out. Children can move around and make noise, allowing them the freedom to enjoy the movies without social limitations to hamper their experience. Truly, the autism-friendly cinema or sensory-friendly movie is an innovative approach to autism and the movie experience, and yet, it has only been in existence for a very short time.

In 2007, Ms. Marianne Ross and her seven-year-old daughter with autism were asked to leave a movie theater when Meaghan started flapping her hands and jumping up and down. Ms. Ross turned this negative experience around by jumpstarting a program that aimed to provide a safe entertainment haven for children like her daughter. The first SF movie was a success in November of 2007 and, with support from Autism Society of America and AMC Entertainment, owner of AMC Cinemas chain, the program finally went national in April of this year.

Across the globe, the UK’s National Autistic Society and Picturehouse Cinemas partnered in January 2009 to start their own autism-friendly film screenings. At any one time in England, 16 movie theaters across the country host these screenings once a month. They have gotten so organized that they already have a dedicated page in the NAS website solely for screening schedules.      

When Cinema 3 of SM North EDSA’s The Block opened its doors to its patrons on Friday morning, the lines were long. Two hundred students from different schools and institutions (Bridges, ALRES, Cradles of Learners, Immaculate Concepcion SPED, New Hope, Wise Light, Stimulation and Therapeutic Activity Center), all accompanied by their teachers, parents, or caregivers filled the cinema lobby. Alphonse and I were also  invited. Our very first movie felt like a real date.

As expected, our children screamed and cried, and yet, they also laughed. Some walked around and roamed the aisles, yet many more stayed in their seats. Alphonse hooted many times, jumped up and down on his seat, stood up twice to walk around and use the restroom, and flapped his arms more times than Up’s colorful but flightless bird, Kevin. Still, he sat through almost the entire movie and behaved like a seasoned moviegoer, munching on a bucket of popcorn. He gave up only around 15 minutes before the end when the sound of barking dogs unnerved him. Not bad for his very first cinema experience.

Alphonse watching his very first movie, "Up"

I spent more time watching Alphonse than I did the movie, gazing at his face as it expressed emotions, watching his eyes light up in excitement. In truth, I had tears in my eyes the entire time. Holding my son’s hands in the semi-darkness of the movie theater, I felt my heart almost burst with happiness many times.

I think Alphonse and I are definitely luckier than Ms. Ross. I didn’t even have to wait for support from Autism Society Philippines and SM’s Commitee for Disability Affairs. They took it upon themselves to make this possible for my son and for many children like him who have not had the privilege of enjoying a simple movie even once. They made this dream come true, and in the process, made autism history come alive for us. It is this kind of commitment, compassion, and kinship that make their joint endeavors truly worth supporting.

Come and be a part of more history in the making with Autism Society Philippines’ 11^th National Conference on Autism on October 24-25, 2009 at the SMX Convention Center, SM Mall of Asia.