Published July 02, 2009 12:29 pm - July 2, 2009
Camp with a cause
Children with autism are spending this summer learning new skills.
By TRAVINA COLEMAN
Press Staff Writer
GORE — Daphne Hamon said she was willing to do anything to help Kyle live a normal life.
Kyle, 13, lives with Aspergers’ disorder.
And now after what she calls tremendous progress, she has teamed up with a group of dedicated people to help other children who suffer from the disorders associated with autism.
Aspergers Disorder is a milder variant of autistic disorder. Both Aspergers disorder and autistic disorder are in fact subgroups of a larger diagnostic category. Though grammatical, their speech may sound peculiar due to abnormalities of inflection and a repetitive pattern. Clumsiness may be prominent both in their articulation and gross motor behavior.
Camp Grey Squirrel is the first of it’s kind in Oklahoma. It’s a 501(c)3 organization with the mission of providing affordable therapy for those suffering from the debilitating disorder.
And by all accounts, Kyle is very normal.
With curious eyes and quick responses, to an untrained eye – i.e. the general public – Kyle is functioning normally.
“We tried a lot of things,” Hamon said. “Including going casein-free in his diet.”
She said she has thought about going gluten-free, but said Kyle eats like a horse.
“I can’t keep that from him,” she said. “And we do give him cheese sometimes.”
This particular diet was made famous by Jenny McCarthy, whose son suffers from autism. So Hamon put him on the casein-free diet which calls for the elimination of milk protein, or casein.
Hamon saw wonderful results.
“He does wonderful on the diet,” she said.
Her personal struggle to create a path for Kyle to follow, in order to keep him functioning in society, is now being passed on to others.