Austin’s new friends (Austin, our superstar of the day, is the one in bright orange).
Art of Giving: Just by Being Present for Others
Perhaps this isn’t art-related, but the story is so wonderful it needs to be shared. Yesterday was a most memorable day. It started off at our local animal shelter so that my daughter could drop off the donations that she had collected during her “epic” lemonade and cookie stand. We thought that meeting the furry friends we were helping would be the highlight of our day, but little did we know how much better the day would get. The cake was only just being baked…
The yummy frosting came in the afternoon when we met a sweet 11-year-old boy named Austin who also has autism and Tourette’s. His mom (our new friend Delilah) had recently posted to a local forum on Facebook how her son recently cried while watching his siblings make friends with kids on the playground while he had none. Austin was feeling especially lonely this summer, and rarely gets asked on a play date, so Austin’s mom asked for anyone who was willing to bring their kids to come meet him at the playground. She also mentioned how her son Austin dreams of being a firefighter when he grows up, so if anyone knew someone who was a firefighter/EMS who could come visit, it would be a huge bonus, but wasn’t necessary.
My little group of autism parents sprung right into action. My friend Katie saw the post and sent a text to our friend Lori and her husband Chris who is a detective with local police to see if a first responder was available to stop by.
Later that afternoon, we rolled into the parking lot to the most amazing sight: 2 cruisers, 1 D.A.R.E. cruiser, 5 police officers, 1 ambulance, 1 fire truck, multiple firefighters…and plenty of new friends for Austin! The greatest sight of all was a very excited Austin who ran right up to our car to meet us. His smile was truly priceless!
This impromptu event just came together in less than a day. All because of a text and a few people who saw a Facebook post and simply decided to show up. None of us had any idea how amazing it would be. As my friend Katie put it, “humanity sang”…and the sound was incredible. Austin had proclaimed that it was his “best day ever”!
Hats off to our first responders who showed up to let the kids climb all over their vehicles, let them shout in their loudspeakers and even stayed to play on the playground. Cheers to the autism parents: Katie, Lori, Chris and Ashleigh, some of my dearest friends who may be busy dealing with their own issues, but will never hesitate to help out someone else out in the same situation. We all posed for a group photo for Austin as a reminder of all the friends he has now. It is an honor to call Austin our new friend, and we look forward to returning to the playground to play with him again next week!
The first responders had fun too!
Note: the local media has quickly gotten ahold of this story and it is being a bit distorted as it spreads. No, it was not the boy’s birthday as some news outlets reported, and to also clarify, no one involved is trying to make a statement about first responders in light of recent events. This is simply a story of a community coming together to cheer up a boy and make his day <3.