Thank you to SADI supporters

On Saturday, Oct. 2, SADI held our second annual Walk-A-Thon to raise money for the GAPS program. GAPS is the acronym for Giving Autistics' Parents Support.

Thanks to the generosity of our community and the wonderful staff at SADI, the GAPS program will have $7,000 more to assist families in 2011. I personally want to thank all those who dug deep into their pockets and also those that donated items, time and talents. At SADI, we do not have large corporate sponsors or donors. Our services are built and supported by individuals who have been touched in some way by a disability in their own lives. They are the ones that we can depend on to make a difference. And they are the ones that made our Autism Walk so successful.

Autism is the fastest growing disability in our country. It can be an overwhelming diagnosis for the whole family. I hope that Southeast Missouri will continue to support these families and embrace these wonderful children who are often misunderstood because they do not fit into society's definition of "normal." Thanks again to those who supported the walk.

DONNA THOMPSON, Scott City