Meet Gabe.  Gabe turned 8 on March 6^th.  Gabe has autism.  Autism is a social disorder that as of 2012, the CDC reports, affects 1 in every 82 boys born in the US.  Most of y’all have met Gabe and will agree that he is the nicest, sweetest 8 yr old one will ever meet.  He just doesn’t have a mean bone in his body.

For those that don’t know Gabe personally I wanted to take a moment to introduce him.  Monday April 2^nd is World Autism Awareness Day and they want everyone to wear blue to bring awareness to autism.  I don’t see how wearing a blue shirt is really going to teach anyone anything about autism.  It’s a great start but my hope was I would share a little about Gabe with y’all to maybe bring awareness with a more personal touch.  If you got this you either know me or somebody who does know me, so maybe by putting a face (Gabe’s face) on autism I can bring real awareness.  Thanks for your time.

Gabe enjoys playing with his trucks and trains and loves reading books.  He’s especially happy at home or at his grandparent’s home.  They are his safe places along with school, which he really enjoys most days too.  Autism has made Gabe a little “different” than a typical 8 year old. He has extreme anxiety and fears of loud noises, strange noises, new noises, and especially fire alarms.  He overly obsesses about places not having a fire alarm siren go off while there and will only enter a place after you promise him there will not be a fire alarm while there.  He has many stims (stimming is usually a physical action that many affected with autism will do repeatedly usually as a coping method).  When anxious, nervous, afraid or tired, Gabe’s stims will usually be more pronounced.  His stims include running (back and forth, in place, in a circle), verbal stimming (repeating the same phrase or word for minutes to hours at a time), and most recently biting his own hand to the point that it is now scarred and bleeding at times.  He can’t control this urge to stim.  Sometimes it happens when he’s standing in line at a checkout at the grocery store, for example.  There is no warning or inclination of his sensory needs.  We have no idea how long he will need to “act” on this desire.  Of course we have ways to try to coax him into choosing a more desirable resolution for him to cope with his inner battle but sometimes all the tricks still don’t work. 

Gabe is not very talkative and will hardly ever make direct eye contact with you.  When he does talk, it more than likely will be in a barely audible whisper.  He is extremely intelligent and loves to be challenged at school.  He is really good at math, reading, spelling but does have trouble with handwriting and reading comprehension.  If you give Gabe a job to do, he will knock it out without instruction faster than you would think imaginable. 

I’m not writing about Gabe because I seek any kind of sympathy nor do I desire you think I have been dealt a bad hand.  I love every minute I get to spend with my sweet Gabe.  He makes you laugh and cry every day.  I am so proud of him and he is the love of my life.  Many people have things so much worse.  I wanted you to meet Gabe because there a lot of “Gabes” out there and not all their parents are as strong as I am.  The majority of the time Gabe is having a moment in public, without fail we will receive the meanest glares and stares. Sometimes those are followed by words, “Why don’t you control your child?”  type of comments.  Very rarely does someone go out of their way to ask if everything is ok or if they can help in any way.  I promise if next time you saw a “Gabe” having some issues in public, if you took a second to just ask their parent if they needed any help, it would make their day.  So, please think about Gabe next time you see a kid or adult acting “different”, before glaring or making a rude comment, think about what you don’t know about his/her situation.  It could be that you’re just seeing one of the “Gabe’s” of the world having a moment. 

I thank y’all for taking the time to read this and for being a part of Gabe’s World for a moment.  I promise you, even if he doesn’t even know you – Gabe already loves you……

- Bruno Cavazos

9 months old. She has Down Syndrome and had a few medical issues so

we were very nervous to leave her with just anybody but we also

needed time – just my husband and I, to be alone together during

such an incredible stressful time. Someone mentioned Night Lights and

we decided to try it. Our first volunteer was an older women who

had an adult son with Down Syndrome – now who better to take care

of our precious new baby than someone who had a child with the same

issues as ours. As Julia has grown into a big 9 year old and we

have added siblings, Night Lights contines to hold a special place in

our hearts. We know she is well taken care of and treated with

respect and well, just like any other kid there. My typical kids love

to go as well. Everyone has their own volunteer and they get to do

all kinds of fun activities. My youngest loves the guide dogs and petting

zoos and my middle son just loves to run around the gym – we

always know his volunteer will sleep well that night! Julia just loves

the individual attention!

Another bonus that we have discovered as the children have gotten

older, we know a lot of the other families who attend Night Lights

and we will congregate in the parking lot and visit about our children’s

triumphs and set-backs. No one understands what is like to

have a child with special needs better than another parent of a child

with special needs – we can laugh and cry together. Often times we

all go to dinner and catch-up, knowing all the while that are children

are having fun!!!

Night Lights has been such a blessing to our family and we thank

all of the volunteers and donors who help it continue on.. you are

truly making a difference in people’s lives

Our son Sam started going to Night Lights three years ago. Night Lights is one of the greatest joys in his life. He really feels very special and has a loving bond with his special friend Mr. Steve.

In Sam’s world it is difficult for him to comprehend or figure out a lot of the activity that surrounds him. He has trouble staying on tasks, so when he goes to Night Lights he has someone, Mr. Steve who makes sure he is the MOST IMPORTANT kid in the room.

We can’t tell Sam that he is going to Night Lights, until about an hour before we leave to go to the gym. If we tell him a day or two before, he will ask 100 times or more, when are we going?????

Sam is a very kind and loving little boy, who enjoys movies and loves to recite the whole movie or the theme song!!! He has on many occasions sang the theme song to “The Princess and The Frog” in the movie room to close out his Friday “Night Lights” experience.

As parents, Denise and I are so grateful for the “Night Lights” program. We know for four hours that Sam is in a MAGICAL place with SPECIAL friends. We also are thankful to be able to get out and spend time together, whether it be going to a movie or just simply having a long relaxing dinner. I travel a lot, so these Friday nights give Denise and I time to catch up!!!

Due to Sam’s condition, he really needs to be watched 24/7. We know that everyone who volunteers at Night Lights has Sam’s best interest and safety in mind.

In closing, with all the cut backs in Health Care and school funding, programs like Night Lights are even more vital to “SPECIAL KIDS” and their families

We thanks God for the “Night Lights” program and all the very SPECIAL VOLUNTEERS who give of their time and energy to help “SPECIAL KIDS” and their families.

God Bless you all.

Warmest regards,

Tom, Denise and Sam Rachal

If this sounds like a position you’d excel at, please visit our Volunteers page to sign up. You must complete an application and give us consent to run a background check in order to become a volunteer. We hope you’ll consider working with us!