Autism Trek

Stefan Marinoiu is walking 452 kilometres from Toronto to Ottawa to raise autism awareness in Canada. Specifically he plans to speak with the federal government about increasing funding to support families like his who are dealing with autism and to fund more autism research. Mr. Marinoiu's trek is motivated by autism reality, the reality of raising a 15 year old autistic boy:

Marinoiu has a 15-year-old son who was diagnosed with autism when he was a child.

Marinoiu and his wife have struggled to provide proper support while their son's condition has deteriorated with age. He has now become aggressive, a common symptom in autistic children, and Marinoiu is afraid the Children's Aid Society may take him away, fearing he could hurt their younger six-year-old child.

"His autism has progressed to the point that communication is a struggle," Marinoiu said. "We just do not have the money to provide proper care for him."

- The Belleveille Intelligencer

Rhetoric about finding the joy in your child's autism does not help families like the Marinoiu's. Real solutions to difficult and at times heart wrenching challenges are needed. Hopefully the federal government will give Mr. Marinoiu an audience in which they listen to his concerns and come up with ways it can help families like the Marinoiu's. Not every autistic person makes submissions to the Supreme Court of Canada or the Canadian Senate. Some face much more serious challenges and require much more help to live a decent life in this country. Hopefully Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Health Minister Tony Clement will listen to this dedicated Dad who has put it on the line to trek from Toronto to Ottawa in the cold Canadian winter.

autism