Personal message

My name is Antoinette Grimbeek, proud mother of two beautiful daughters Anzette and Franzelle Grimbeek. Anzette was diagnosed at an early age with Autism. My husband and I are minimum wage earners and find it difficult to make ends meet in these difficult economic times. Parenting a young child is always challenging and exhausting. When you are the parent of a child with autism, the challenges multiply.

It is very difficult for me to ask for help, but the love we have for our kids and the need for them to be taken care of, outshines any fear of reaching out for assistance. I therefore had no choice but to start this BackaBuddy campaign to try to raise funds to help us with Anzette’s education. She deserves to lead a happy and normal childhood just as much as any other child.

So exactly what is Autism? Autism is a developmental disorder that appears in early childhood. Autism is the most common condition in a related constellation of disorders known as autism spectrum disorders, also called ASD’s. Other autism spectrum disorders include Asperger's syndrome and pervasive developmental disorder, or PDD. Autism and other autism spectrum disorders can be difficult to diagnose because the symptoms and degree of impairment -- ranging from mild to severe -- are different for every child.

Some features of autism include:

• Social withdrawal
• Verbal or nonverbal communication problems
• Rigid and repetitive behavior
• In severe cases, an autistic child may never learn to speak or make eye contact. But many children with autism and other autism spectrum disorders are able to live relatively normal lives.

There is no cure for autism, but early intervention using skills-training and behavior modification can yield excellent results. This type of educational and behavioral treatment tackles autism symptoms -- impaired social interaction, communication problems, and repetitive behaviors. It can also boost the chances of a child with child autism being able to go to school and participate in typical activities. Autistic children tend to do best when they have a highly structured schedule or routine.

Your donation will help me give Anzette this much-needed education that she deserves. We have found an amazing school, Oak Valley Tutoring Academy, and their amazing team of teachers where Anzette is already excelling. I hope to keep Anzette at Oak Valley but in order to do so I need every assistance I can get.

I want to thank all our friends and family that have supported us and specifically supported Anzette so far. I want to thank everyone for their donation, no matter the amount. Anzette sends her love and gratitude. Thank you!

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