When my oldest son Max, was a little over a year old we started to notice something was not right with him.  My beautiful, adorable little boy was unable to look me in the eye, and he wasn’t talking.  He avoided attention and he was happier to sit by himself for long periods of time.  This behavior was not what I was seeing in other children his age!

It’s every mother’s nightmare that something might be wrong with their child, and this nightmare appeared to be coming true for me.  My heart was breaking!

After many trips to doctors and specialists, and test after test, the news finally came that Max had Autism.  By the time we received the news, we knew this is where we were headed.  It’s a long process to get to the ‘official’ diagnosis.  

Many nights, after a long hard day of work, trips to the speech therapist, and just trying to help Max cope, I would find myself sitting outside looking at the stars to catch my breath.  Somewhere up in the night sky there was a safe place.  A place where the nightmare didn’t exist.  A place where answers were waiting. 

‘Up above the sky so bright, like a diamond in the night, Twinkle, Twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are’. 

I had no idea what those answers were, or what that safe place was until I found The Palm Beach School for Autism in Lantana, FL.  This school was the safe place!  So safe, we moved our family from New Jersey to Florida so Max could receive the best care possible!  We were so lucky to find this school.  Max is blossoming!  His vocabulary has increased exponentially, and he is learning more and more!  It is clear he will one day be able to function in our society with the help he is getting from our school. 

Needless to say, I am passionate about the work this amazing school is doing and wanted to help.  One night as I was again looking at the stars, it came to me!  My answer was to create a product that we could sell to raise funds for the school and the new center it wanted to develop.  There are many pieces to the puzzle of Autism, so it was only natural that I started with this symbol.  Next I wanted to try to replicate the night sky where I had found so much comfort.  Through these thoughts our product was born. 

It is my hope that everyone who wears my necklace will find some comfort in knowing that there are answers out there.  We will be able to solve the puzzle of Autism.  Help is not beyond their reach. 

My dream is for every Mother, Sister, Aunt, and Grandmother who has a loved one dealing with Autism, will wear our necklace as a symbol that they are helping to solve the puzzle of Autism in their own way. 

It’s Not Just Art, It’s a Statement!