Something Uplifting for a change.
 

https://www.klkntv.com/sarasota-man-...gravel-worlds/

Kids with "exceptionalities" (learning , physical, emotional and mental disabilities) often are either held back or made to feel they just sometimes cant do what others can.
My nephew is the first autistic person to compete and finish Gravel Worlds.
This kid (he is around 11-13 mentally) is an extremely hard working young man and we couldnt be more proud.
Seeing the rest of those training with him really makes you take a step back for what simple things can bring so much joy.
One of them learned to ride a bike for the first time and it was like he won the lottery.

Awesome.

That's awesome! Congratulations to Josh :D

That is great. The Gravel race community is how bike racing used to be and should be.

I will be honest I'd never heard of it. But they treated him like a king the whole time and next year he will be leading a team of 10 or 11

That's very cool! Give him my congratulations.

What a wonderful post.
Congratulations to your nephew.
Just great
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That is awesome. You must be so proud. I love hearing stories like this one.
Thank you for sharing!

Congrats!

What a beautiful story! Thanks for posting

This is great!! As the father of an autistic boy, I love to hear stories like this!! Way to go uncle!!!

Oh no credit on my behalf haha, I'm a lucky uncle. The dude has more drive than anyone I know.
The company GTFO based here is doing a great job with them

That is so cool! Congrats! Gravel riding/racing is a ton of fun!

Best thread I've seen in a long time.

Thank you for making my day better…

LFG!!!

Congratulations to your nephew for taking on such a challenge and for completing it! That's awesome!

Great story

Give the young man a 'well done' pat on the back for me as well.

I will pass on the kind words.
On a funny note he turned 21 and his parents try to do what they can to make him feel as "normal" as possible. He really wanted to order his first beer one night.
Fast forward a few weeks and he was at my shop at about 9:30 am. Beer in hand and chugging away. I say "Josh! Its 9:30 in the morning, what are you drinking beer for?!"
His reply in a sarcastic voice ( and for an autistic kid sarcasm isnt generally their strong point) he says "I had McDonalds" and chugged away.... tough to argue that logic i guess ����

https://www.facebook.com/10595900426...3294209198757/
Thought you all might like to see this. My wife and I got to do a 5k with him last weekend but this is the story of his Gravel Worlds race.

So got some cool news this week.
The organization GTFO did a documentary with my nephew and the other kids in the Adirondacks. It just got picked for short documentary at Cannes!
https://youtu.be/ft3zyG4SKDM

This is a great thread. Thanks for sharing this.

Been teaching shop for 32 years.have had hundreds of special needs kids. They almost always do well and are good at following directions. They also have a tendency to make your day. My first year, 32 years ago, before they began putting special needs kids with the others, I was assigned to teach a sped woodworking class. The para assigned to assist me was more work than the kids.I would take two pieces of wood and nail them together and lift them with the nail. The para would clap every time. The kids would look at each other and shake their heads. It was hilarious and I did it every day. I still remember those kids.

That is so cool. Congrats to Josh!

Heh this reminds me of a guy I knew well 20 some years ago when I worked with handicap residential and there was this guy named Leo who had no arms. I may have told this story before but I still find it remarkable. He had a car designed to help him drive with no arms. He liked to drink and ended up hitting a telephone pole. Asked why he was drinking and driving he said "because normal people drink and drive" .

Gonna eat some crow.... I've been a huge critic of this D and they've proven that they can turn it around.

Great job D...

Gravel World's is coming to Kansas this summer and Joshua (my nephew) is coaching an entire team of kids with disabilities, or what they call "exception-alities"
We will be there cheering him on!

Good for him it’s nice to read a story like this from time to time instead of all the negative stuff.

OUTSTANDING! Make sure you let CP know if there's any way we can help.

So Saturday Joshua did his first 100 mile race in Emporia Kansas, 10 hours total time and due to the weather had to carry his bike for 2 miles thru mud. At 64 miles he tells his trainer " I don't think I want to be Superman anymore".... His trainer reassured him that even Superman didn't always want to be, but because of his power he had a responsibility.
He then outpaced his coach for the last 36 miles and crossed the finish line fist pumping!!

https://media3.giphy.com/media/3u0SSYwiD6yLm/giphy.gif
Love this. What an amazing trainer to keep pushing him like that, but most importantly what a ****ing heart on Joshua! Tell Superman thanks for the motivation.

Great accomplishment all around.
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This is awesome. Glad to hear he's keeping it going

So he completed his second 100 mile race!

If you all wouldn't mind giving it a view and a like that would help him a lot.
https://youtu.be/lAwuFrLGhBY?feature=shared

My brothers son has autism and he is a happy go lucky kid.

Sadly he has no social skills or awareness so he can't work, drive a car or do things others can.

He can take care of himself and cook and do most self sufficient tasks.

He is now in his mid 20's and my brother is fearful of what his life will be when he and his wife are no longer around.

They need to set up a Special Needs Trust.

Viewed! Awesome!

That's incredible. So cool.

I'm sure they have looked at all options but there is some amazing stuff out there to help

I take care of my grandson and am waiting for a neurological screening on him. Not sure an independent life is in his future.

Best of luck to your nephew.

That's great.

This is great!

I think that Scho's brother and his wife are less concerned about the money aspect and more about the personal/emotional well-being of their adult child once they have passed.

You can set up all the monetary needs that will take care of him/her, but finding a situation/group home that will provide the love and support needed is not always guaranteed.

Being the parents of a 32 y/o adult on the autism spectrum with much the same level of concerns my wife and I have grave concerns.

The problem is that there are resources available but those are maxxed out as they can be. Finding good group homes is not at all easy because they have long wait lists. And the ones that are available many times seem a bit sketchey.

Strictly from a financial perspective, they should consider an ABLE account as well as consider a Special Needs Trust. Beyond that, they should look into the various types of Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) available in their state. Supports and services have been evolving over the past generation, and congregate settings such as group homes are being utilized less and less. There have been a lot of advances in supporting people with disabilities in the community that promote both independence and inclusion.

For anyone interested, here is more information about ABLE accounts in Kansas: https://savewithable.com/ks/home.html

Mind if I ask what state you live in? Since you mentioned waiting lists, and you are a Chiefs fan, do you live in KS or IA? Both of those states have long waiting lists for services: https://www.kff.org/medicaid/state-i...2:%22asc%22%7D

He can work.

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Thanks for asking.....

I live in Florida which actually has great resources but there is so much demand here that a great deal of patience and dedication is required.

Unfortunately not every state has good resources for families. A couple of the states we have lived in (Missouri one of them) the options were not great or very limited.

I think we have a coming crisis for the ability to handle the large numbers of Autism Spectrum Adults that are aging out.

Not necessarily....there may be.other contributing factors that keep him from working a regular job.

The belief that people with significant disabilities can't work being the primary contributing factor.
https://apse.org/

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Man, it sure is dusty in here!!!!

Thank you for sharing. Absolutely amazing!!!

You might find the FL DD Council interesting, especially as a parent; they will have lots of resources available, and can point you in the direction of other resources in your state: https://www.fddc.org/

I am not saying they can't....I am just saying not in every circumstance. I have seen cases where it is just possible.

Physically no issue.

They keep trying jobs but the comprehension of not walking off a job, customer help or interaction, not getting distracted and disappearing and other issues have prevented him from working.

Yeah, they are concerned he will be put in a home and his two sisters will have difficulty helping take cae of him.

His sisters are both incredibly compassionate and have unlimited patience, just like my sister-in-law.