Autism – Page 2 – Operation Jack

Operation Jack Marathon Discount Code: 1IN50

October 23, 2013 by operationjack Leave a Comment

On Monday, I posted that we’d run a discount code for the Operation Jack Marathon. I used a picture of my son Jack (the Jack in Operation Jack Marathon) to advertise that. Back on his first day of school, he held a sign and if you know your Jay-Z, it was pretty funny. So, I went with the same concept. I’m biased, but I think Jack is cute and it was a fun little thing to do.

Here’s the pic I ran:

Ahh, I love it when Jack is happy ... — I love this little guy!

I loved the pic and went with it. I’d been planning on running a discount with a picture with him for fun for about a week. I wasn’t sure what the code would be. I was thinking IMWITHJACK or OJ2013 … I wasn’t sure. But then for whatever reason, I decided it would be 1IN50. Because that’s why the race exists in the first place. 1 in 50 kids have autism nowadays and it needs to stop. I like to say, “do what you do best and let everybody else do the rest” … my way of fighting autism is through running. And because of Jack, himself a 1 in 50, there’s an Operation Jack, which led to the Operation Jack Marathon.

Operation Jack: My mission to make sure Jack is more than a statistic.

I had no idea that I’d get all serious in announcing a discount code. But I guess it just happened that way. 1IN50 — use CAPS with the IN. Use the code through this Sunday, October 27, to save $10 off the half or the full. That’ll drop your price to just $55 for the half and $65 for the full. For a race that runs along the ocean, has mountain views, is flat and fast, boasts 60-degree temps in late December, offers a custom 4-inch die cast medal and benefits a great cause, you just can’t do better than that!

I’ll definitely be at the race. I hope to see you out there! CLICK HERE to register! Have a great Wednesday![subscribe2]

This Video Shows Why We Moved To Pennsylvania

October 7, 2013 by operationjack 3 Comments

I’m going to be short and sweet with my blog today because if you’re willing to give me two minutes of your time by coming here, I’d rather you spend it watching the video instead of reading something I write. As I’ve documented here many times over the past half-year, we moved from Colorado to Pennsylvania because the folks at the school district in Boulder fought pretty hard to keep our severely autistic son Jack out of school.

Rather than continue to fight since we were in the right, we decided to just move forward and do what was best for Jack and our other two kids. We researched, picked Pennsylvania, and here we are. Jack was out of school all of last year and really regressed, but he started school a month ago and is doing really well. He’s obviously way, way behind, but he’s at least headed in the right direction again. Yesterday, he was bored watching something on TV and wanted Tiff to work with him on his flash cards. Here’s the video:

This is miles ahead of where he was a few months ago. He’s moving in the right direction and he deserves that. That’s why we moved to Pennsylvania.

Quick plugs: About Operation Jack | Operation Jack Marathon

Have a great Monday![subscribe2]

Three Things Friday: Can I Pay For Your Marathon Entry?

September 20, 2013 by operationjack Leave a Comment

Three Things Friday … the whole Three Things Thursday rolls off the tongue easier, but it’s not Thursday. So there’s that. Three quick things and then I’ll send you on your weekend (as if you’re waiting on me for that … but anyways) …

1. I started Operation Jack by running 61 marathons in 52 weeks in 2010. I can’t do that again (well I could, but it would require a corporate sponsorship I’m not going to get). But I still want to get people to run for the cause. So I have what I think is the easiest way to get you to do that: Raise $100 (yes, that’s one-hundred, that’s all) and I’ll cover a marathon entry for you that costs up to $100. Raise $125 for an entry up to $125 or $150 up to $150. The money you raise will go to the autism-related charity of your choice. Basically, I like to raise money to give it out and I want to use my 2014 budget to spread it around all over the place to the charities you pick. Oh, and I’m going to send you an Operation Jack shirt and medal to supplement what you get at your race.

It’s pretty easy, risk-free and it is as much of a no-brainer as it sounds. You could just “raise” the money with your own donation, which would basically be the same cost as your race entry anyways. Take a look at the details. If you’re interested, email me at sam@operationjack.org!

2. I haven’t talked about it much and I’ll probably write up a post very soon. But a lot of you know that we moved out here to Pennsylvania for a better school situation for Jack and he finally started school on September 3. Well three weeks in and it’s going very well. The school is great, the staff is great and Jack’s doing well. I’ve met his teacher and the assistant who’s dedicated to him and so far it confirms everything I thought about why we moved here.

3. Kansas City over the Eagles last night … one bad thing about the East Coast is weeknight football is super, super late now. But it’s gonna be a lot of fun being a Chiefs fan at work in Philly today!

That’s all … that’s three … have a good weekend![subscribe2]

10 Productive Years

September 16, 2013 by operationjack 1 Comment

I love writing when I have have no clue what I’m going to write about. Today is one of those days. It’s Jack’s 10th birthday and all I know is I’m going to write a birthday post but I’m not sure what to say. I guess I’ll start with my standard preface and say that if you’ve never been here, click here to see what Operation Jack is about. My son Jack is the “Jack” in Operation Jack. He was born a decade ago and he’s severely autistic, still in diapers, still barely verbal, still having meltdowns and exhibiting self-injurious behaviors on a daily basis.

I’ve been writing a lot of “woe is me” and “woe is Jack” posts lately, but I’m not going to do that today. It’s not going to do any good. And I just don’t feel like it’s necessary. While I feel like he was robbed of his first 10 years, my wife Tiffany and I have fought hard to position him well for his next 10 years. We’ve learned a lot during the eight years we’ve been in this circle and we relocated 3,000 miles from our roots in California (after a one-year accidental detour in Colorado) to place him in a great school in Pennsylvania and surround ourselves with great people in a strong, local autism community. This next decade will be a LOT better that the past one.

Tiff and Jack yesterday during a little party we had with the neighborhood kids.

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I'm In Denial

August 1, 2013 by operationjack 2 Comments

I’m an autism dad and I’ve known that I’ve been in this unfortunate fraternity for about eight years now. In my circles and extended circles, I’m pretty much known as an autism dad and I can’t even begin to count the number of times somebody has contacted me and asked for advice. One of the first things I always say is don’t live in denial. Telling yourself that your kid doesn’t have autism might make you feel better, but delaying intervention will only hurt your child in the long term. Early intervention, don’t live in denial — that’s my standard advice.

In a reverse kind of way, eight years into this I think I’m living in denial. I still think it’s going to get better for my son Jack. I keep telling myself that. I look at him and think that someday I’m going to have a conversation with him and stop buying diapers for him. But when I step back from my situation and try to look at things objectively, I think I’m trying to convince myself of something that isn’t true. [Read more…]