In the coming months here at AutismSpot, we’re going to be shining the spotlight on parents raising kids with Autism Spectrum Disorders. As we continue our “Spotlight” series in December, we’re featuring mothers from the Dallas/Fort Worth area found in the final photo of The Autism File Autism Mothers Unite Worldwide 2011 Calendar. Click here for more information about our “Spotlight” Series.

Today, it is my pleasure to share Beth Ausa-Evangelista’s “story” in our new “Spotlight” Series here on AutismSpot. Beth is a gracious friend and mother. She is active in the community – always willing to share great information and support others; her faith and encouraging nature are a true gift to all those who know her.
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LAW: Tell us a little bit about yourself & your family.
BAE: I am a 38-year old Asian, born and raised in the Philippines, by both well respected and loved community and Catholic church leaders in our parish. My father served as the president of the Parish Pastoral Council for years, while my mother served as its Treasurer. I am the eldest of four siblings, all of whom were blessed with their respective bachelor degrees. From early and secondary school, I was deeply fascinated with Mathematics, specifically Geometry, Trigonometry and logic reasoning, so there was no doubt in my mind when I decided to venture into the then newly introduced Computer Engineering curriculum in one of the most reputable Engineering schools in my country. After college, I immediately landed into the Information Technology or IT industry. I worked from being a Systems Analyst to a Team Lead IT Consultant of various firms such as Accenture, NSC Software Corporation, Bank of the Philippine Islands and eTelecare International. During the course of getting my Master’s Degree in Computer Science, I also had the opportunity to become a member of the faculty in one of the best computer schools in the country. On top of all these, the most wonderful experience I had was during those moments in my youth, wherein I had several opportunities to serve the community both as servant and leader in my school, parish, as well as the local government. Being immersed in the service of the poor and exposure to different social, religious and civil groups had always been my passion.

With a successful career and a need to finally settle down, I married Jen, my first and only boyfriend of five years. God has blessed me to have him as my husband. We met in college, which means he is also an Engineer and very much successful in his own field. As an Electronics and Communications Engineer, he had worked for several multinational telecommunications companies based across the globe. But last June 2003, Jen accepted a great opportunity to permanently work in the United States for one of the biggest telecommunications companies based in Finland. Still 3 months pregnant with Julian, and bracing for the challenge of a new culture & environment, we left our loved ones, careers & homeland behind, and migrated to the US last August 2003. Our first stop was Delaware, where Jen was initially assigned for a project, but it was in Maryland, on Dec 23, 2003, when Julian came into our lives. Jen’s work allows us to travel quite often but on June 2004, his company made a relocation package to settle in Texas permanently.
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LAW: What was your life like before “Autism” touched your world?
BAE: Perfect!
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LAW: How old was Julian when you received a diagnosis? What kind of professional diagnosed him? Did you suspect ASD before the diagnosis?
BAE: We got the “official” diagnosis in Dec 2007 (Julian was 4) from Dr Lisa Genecov (developmental pediatrician). Yes I did suspect ASD before, which is why I quoted “official” because in my mind I already knew what it was…
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LAW: What kinds of therapies and treatments have helped Julian and your family the most?
BAE: RDI with Speech, OT, ABA-VB, swimming, horseback riding, biking, and gymnastics are the best interventions we did for Julian. We know that all the biomed, GFCF diet, Nutritional Response Testing, Tomatis, Craniosacral/chiro adjustments, osteopathic manipulations, prism glasses, sports like bowling, baseball, soccer, camps and school helped, too.
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LAW: What kinds of therapies/treatments are on your “Wish List” to try next and why?
BAE: HBOT, NeuroProtek, Vision therapy, Neurofeedback, basketball, roller and ice skating, and more camps in summer.
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LAW: Which groups have helped you on your journey?
BAE: NAA-NT and Couples For Christ.
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LAW: What is the most frustrating aspect of “Autism” for you? Any unexpected blessings brought into your world by “Autism”?
BAE: The mindset of people who do not believe in recovery and those who look down on our kids and think they are just useless member of the society and are a burden and who will continue to be a burden. Autism had changed me. And that changed had opened up a lot of opportunities for me to be a CHRIST to the world.
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LAW: What advice do you have for parents new to an ASD diagnosis?
BAE: Pray. Pray and Pray! Just keep the FAITH, hold on to that HOPE and believe that God is in control. Always work on the internal aspect of yourself and do not lose yourself in the process. You can take all the time in the world for you to grieve because really this Autism thing is like a death sentence in itself but since I believe in the life after death… I think this makes things easier to bear and at times, really exciting. And since I know that I am not alone, this makes the journey kinda sweet and fun, at times. It also helps so much to work on your relationships, either with your husband, mom/dad or anyone you consider a trusted friend because you will really need someone to accompany you in the journey.
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LAW: What is your dream for your Julian’s future? What are you doing right now to help him reach that goal?
BAE: My dream for Julian has never changed. It was the same dream even before Jen and I were trying to conceive the idea of building our family together. I dreamt of child who will know himself, his identity and his roots and will accept who he is and be comfortable in his own being. I also dream of a child who will grow up to love himself, others and God by serving and giving back to the community and just try to contribute to make this world a better place than when he arrived.
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LAW: Anything else you wish to share?
BAE: I just wanted to say, I love this life. I love the people God has blessed me with and I love the way God unfolds His absolute Wisdom and abundant Love to all.
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Leigh Attaway Wilcox is a writer and editor for the projectLD family of companies. Leigh is Assistant Editor of the internationally acclaimed AutismSpot.com and her work can be found on many of the pLDNetworks sites. Leigh is a guest blogger for the Dallas Morning News on the Dallas Moms Blog and is the author of ALL BETTER: A Touch-and-Heal Book published by Piggy Toes Press in 2007. Leigh lives in North Texas with her husband and young son who loves reading, LEGOs, Mario Bros. and also happens to live with Asperger's Syndrome, an Autism Spectrum Disorder.