West Amwell mayor knows pain of autism - Peter Buchsbaum was grateful to members of the Township Committee for proclaiming April Autism Awareness Month as his son has autism.
Peter Buchsbaum was grateful to members of the Township Committee
for proclaiming April Autism Awareness Month as his son has autism.
By:
Concetta Benuzzi Volpe , Special Writer
04/16/2003
WEST AMWELL — An emotional Mayor Peter Buchsbaum, who knows the
challenges of raising an autistic child firsthand, thanked Township
Committee members for passing a resolution proclaiming April Autism
Awareness Month.
West Amwell's proclamation was supported unanimously by the
committee and read aloud by Municipal Clerk Betty Jane Hunt at the
meeting April 2.
Mr. Buchsbaum thanked fellow committee members for standing with
him in support of the resolution recognizing the developmental
disorder while paying tribute to the community that has embraced his
son, Matthew, 28, who was diagnosed with autism at age 11.
The mayor said recent caseload reports from the New Jersey
Division of Developmental Disabilities suggest 38 percent of
children under the age of 13 are autistic, and that number
dramatically drops to 10 percent in people over 20, suggesting the
disorder is be- ing diagnosed and recognized more readily.
"My son is autistic, and we didn't know until he was 11," the
mayor said. "That's why I believe awareness, diagnosis and treatment
is critical. Matty attended a special education program at the
Midland School most of his youth and was somewhat divorced from the
community he lived in, having never had the opportunity to attend
school in West Amwell."
The Midland School is a private facility in Branchburg (Somerset
County) for students with severe neurological disabilities,
including autism.
Finally, in 1994, when Matthew was 20, he was enrolled in South
Hunterdon Regional High School for two years and participated in the
graduation ceremony, receiving a diploma in 1996.
"I was really proud of the way he was welcomed into South by
staff and students," the mayor said, "This community has been his
home, and I appreciate the love and support he has been shown."
Today, Matthew, 28 is a productive member of society and has a
reasonably busy schedule thanks to his mother, Elaine Buchsbaum, who
also functions as Matthew's case manager, the mayor said.
"Elaine has established a great schedule for Matty," Mr.
Buchsbaum said.
Matthew works two days a week at the Super Stop & Shop Bakery in
Flemington and spends one day a week as a volunteer with Hunterdon
County Meals on Wheels.
When he isn't working or volunteering, he spends time at a
sheltered workshop run by the Association for Retarded Citizens,
more commonly known by the acronym ARC of Hunterdon County's ARC
Industries.
West Amwell's resolution is part of a public awareness campaign
spearheaded by Paul Potito, executive director of the New Jersey
Center for Outreach and Services for the Autistic Community (COSAC)
in Ewing.
According to Mr. Potito, April is Autism Awareness Month in New
Jersey as well as across the nation.
Art Ball, director of governmental affairs for the center,
defined the disorder as a developmental disability characterized by
atypical, often repetitive behavior and deficits in social and
communication skills. According to Mr. Ball, the disorder is a
lifelong condition that results in some degree of social isolation.
Mr. Ball said there is no known cure for the disorder at this time
but early diagnosis and intervention can be very effective.
"Perhaps the most important thing is to be aware of autism, and
if parents suspect something is wrong with their child, make sure to
ask their pediatrician about it," Mr. Ball said. "If they get no
satisfactory answer there, they should seek another medical
professional with a better understanding of this disability."
The center is a nonprofit agency providing information, advocacy
services, family and professional education and consultation since
1965.
According to Mr. Buchsbaum, the center's effort to educate the
general public about autism and its effects is a statewide endeavor
designed to encourage community leaders to inform local residents
about the disorder directing them toward available information and
resources.
The township is urging all employees and residents to become
better educated on the subject of autistic spectrum disorders so
symptoms of the disability may become more easily recognizable.
According to the resolution passed in West Amwell, autism once
was thought to be a relatively rare disorder affecting one in every
10,000 individuals but the disorder has become pervasive throughout
the population, currently affecting one in every 500 children.
The Autism Society of America suggests autism is a genetic
disorder that is possibly triggered by environmental factors.
Mr. Potito said signs of autism usually develop before the age of
3, although the condition is frequently not diagnosed until much
later.
According to Mr. Potito, early diagnosis and treatment helps
young children develop to their full potential.
"We believe that early intervention is the best medicine," he
said, "The New Jersey autism community has been in a national
leadership role for decades. When there is a breakthrough in
research or treatment, it will most likely occur in New Jersey
because the level of awareness is tremendous in the Garden State,
thanks to the efforts of thousands of active, involved parents."
He said the disorder affects how an individual perceives and
processes sensory information influencing social, learning and
behavioral development but as public awareness intensifies, health
professionals have become more proficient in diagnosis and early
detection.
According to the center, studies indicate autism knows no racial,
ethnic or social boundaries and is considered to be four to five
times more prevalent in boys than girls.
"Specific treatment varies depending on the range of the
individual's symptoms that are subject to change over time," Mr.
Potito said.
He said a child with autism responds best to a highly structured,
specialized educational program tailored to his or her individual
needs, and parents, school staff and health care professionals are
usually involved developing a treatment plan.
Anyone interested in learning more about autism can contact the
center at (800) 4-AUTISM or access the center's information and
referral page at www.njcosac.org where Web links and other resources
are available.
The center does not have a chapter in Hunterdon County, but
provides help to all New Jersey families. The center maintains
databases on just about any service, professional program newspaper
and magazine article available on the subject.
Local individuals, families and professionals also may contact
ARC for information at (908) 730-7827 or at www.archunterdon.org. or
the Autism Society of America at (800) 3-AUTISM or at
www.autism-society.org.
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MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION
PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS
OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR
LEGAL ADVICE. THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO VACCINATE IS AN IMPORTANT AND
COMPLEX ISSUE AND SHOULD BE MADE BY YOU, AND YOU ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH
YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.
"A foolish faith in authority is the worst enemy of truth."
-- Albert Einstein, letter to a friend, 1901
"I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves, and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education."
-- Thomas Jefferson, letter to William C. Jarvis, September 28, 1820
"What's the point of vaccination if it doesn't protect you from the unvaccinated?"
-- Sandy Gottstein
"Who gets to decide what the greater good is and how many will be sacrificed to it?"
