Galway Autism Partnership (GAP), a local charity formed in 2011 by five proactive parents to help each other with information and general support, will celebrate the opening of their newly-renovated building in Newcastle on Wednesday with special guest Keith Duffy, formerly of Boyzone..
The charity aims to empower families caring for persons with an Autism diagnosis, by providing access to relevant training and education with the support of a positive ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) community. Six out of its seven board members have a family member on the Autism Spectrum.
Autism is referred to as a ‘hidden’ disability as people on the autistic spectrum often show no significant physical difference to their peers. Their behaviour is the distinguishing factor. Three main areas of difficulty for people with autism include social communication, social interaction and social imagination.
According to the latest figures Autism occurs in one in sixty-eight children. GAP founding member Miriam Jennings says: “Autism is now an epidemic.”
Much ambiguity surrounds the condition, and there is still no definitive answer as to what causes Autism Spectrum Disorder, though it is generally accepted that it is caused by abnormalities in brain structure or function.
For people and families living with Autism Spectrum Disorder, services like those offered by Galway Autism Partnership are invaluable.
GAP’s headquarters is situated in Laurel Park, Newcastle on a site purpose-built in the 1980s as a diagnostic centre for people with autism – ‘Autism West Limited’. The driving force behind the original centre were Christy and Maisy Dooley; a parents’ labour of love for their son Ronan, who was diagnosed with ASD at age seven.
The newly-renovated building, now occupied by GAP is called ‘Tigh Ronain’ in honour of the Dooley family. Ronan is now in his fifties, his mother Maisy is in her eighties and they are warmly remembered by Galway Autism Partnership.
The autism spectrum, as Miriam Jennings from GAP, explains “refers to the broadness of what you could be living with.” And she knows all about it, the mother of four has three children on the autistic spectrum. Her eldest Jonathan (20) does not have ASD, but her son Alex (14) and twins Elliott and Isaac (8 ½) have all been diagnosed with Autism to varying degrees.
Her son Alex attends an Educate Together School and is currently accessing some of the Junior Cert Curriculum. At the other end of the spectrum is her son Elliott, who is completely non-verbal. Originally doctors suspected he may have Angelman syndrome, but he was later diagnosed with a severe case of autism.
GAP focus on key points such as: education, awareness, advocacy, inclusion, and support and community involvement. They provide fourteen active weekly social and respite clubs and run life skill workshops in schools. GAP also actively organise courses for parents, facilitators and volunteers (e.g. Lamh training, ASD Awareness Courses, CBT Courses, Studio III training and First Aid Training).
Furthermore, GAP runs Holiday Camps during Easter and Summer. And they do all of this without any state funding. They are totally reliant on fundraisers, donations, parents and grants.
“Those three hours that an individual is at a GAP club, a parent can have some time to themselves, knowing that their child is in a safe, supportive environment. It can be the difference between a very stressed and anxious parent to one who gets that essential time to look after themselves so that they can be as strong as they can to support their loved ones,” Miriam explains.
GAP is gearing up to launch an ‘Autism Friendly’ campaign. It is described as a simple business/retailer autism awareness induction so that staff members in shops, restaurants etc. can have a basic understanding of customers needs if he/she is on the spectrum.
“We have agreed with 10-15 businesses in the Latin Quarter,” said Miriam. Each business will send a representative for a two-hour training course, whereupon they will learn about the ASD spectrum and be given a run-through scenario.
Galway Autism Partnership was voted Medtronic Charity of the Year 2015.
The services they provide greatly benefits the lives of families living with ASD. They are holding a launch event on Wednesday to celebrate the opening of the newly-renovated building. It took two years of fundraising to raise the €70,000 necessary to complete the renovation.
Ex-Boyzone and Coronation Street star Keith Duffy, former ambassador for Irish Autism Action, will attend the launch in a personal capacity. “It’s going to be a colourful, happy event with children, teens, and adults from every breath of the spectrum,” said Miriam.
For further information visit their website or find them on Facebook.
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