A note from Zachary

Hi, my name is Zachary!  I'm an 11 year old boy with Autism.  My mom says I'm not 'autistic', I have 'autism'.  Autism is a part of me, not ALL of me!  

I kindof have a bit of a problem (well huge problem!) with running away and escaping!  This is ONE of the reasons I need help from a service dog; to help prevent me from running away. A dog that would block me when I was trying to run. This would help me and my Mom a lot. See, it's hard to go to the park or beach because she spends the whole time chasing me (I have a brother and sister too). It's hard to go to friend and family get-togethers because she spends the entire time chasing me and can't visit with other people.  


Dogs help me to feel calm and anchored.  What that means is I'm not constantly looking for input as to my location in the world.  Sometimes I need to bang on things and hit my head so that I can make sure I know where I am at physically in the world.  When I'm around a dog, especially one that allows me to really touch and sit REAL close... I feel safe and anchored.


Did you know… 
*1 in 150 children is diagnosed with autism
*1 in 94 boys is on the autism spectrum
*67 children are diagnosed per day
*A new case is diagnosed almost every 20 minutes
*More children will be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes & cancer combined*Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S.
*Autism costs the nation over $90 billion per year, a figure expected to double in the next decade
*Autism receives less than 5% of the research funding of many less prevalent childhood diseases
*Boys are four times more likely than girls to have autism
*There is no medical detection or cure for autism

Thank you from me AND my Mom for sharing in this experience with us!  It might be a long road, a hard road trying to fundraise the money for my dog.... but we will not give up!  I'm not sure exactly how much it costs, because I think everything is either 35 dollars or 35 cents!  Mommy says that's a bit low but I'm thinking I'm guessing pretty close!