Kicking Off Autism Awareness

Last year I wrote a blog about attending the Light It Up Blue pep rally at Hernando High School and their Bolt for Blue 5k. The students and staff at Hernando High are an amazing group of people and we really enjoyed that time. They helped us raise the money to get our sweet Jet and it really touched us in a way that's hard to describe.

To read the blog post about last year's Bolt For Blue click here

We took a lot away from that event, and Brad's brain went into overdrive which is always interesting. Ha! He's a planner and a doer, and he appreciated what they did so much he wanted to be able to bring something similar to our community. He put his head together with some coworkers that have kiddos on the autism spectrum as well, and Reconnect 4 Autism was born. We kicked off autism awareness month with Bolt for Blue and closed it out with the Reconnect 4 Autism color run. April 2015 was a very big month for us! 

The funds raised from the color run were used to start sensory friendly family outings in our community.  This is the only fundraiser done by the group.  We've done monthly sensory movies (lights up, sound down, kids free to move about, etc), had a cookout, a pool party, playtime on jumpers, family get-togethers, costume party, and had a blast doing it all. It's been great being with people that understand where we are coming from and I love seeing families get to come and participate in events that they might not normally be able to do. Planning for the second annual color run is in full swing, and we are all looking forward to a year of more sensory friendly family activities. Please plan to join us if you can! 

What the people in Hernando did for our family meant a lot to us and will be with us forever.  They played a big role in Korban getting his service dog, Jet. This was our way of paying it forward the best way we could. I think of it like the ripple effect; like when you toss a stone out into water and see how far the ripples radiate out from it. So let's cast those stones in a good way and see what we can do to bring some positivity to our world!  Autism awareness turning into acceptance from one side of Mississippi to the other and forever connected.

For more information about Bolt for Blue, or to register for the run go here:
Light it up Blue Hernando Facebook Group
Bolt for Blue 5K Registration

Check out Reconnect 4 Autism here and sign up for the second annual color run here:
Reconnect4Autism Facebook Page
Reconnect4Autism Website
Reconnect4Autism Color Run Registration