| February 13, 2003 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Perry Brown (718) 7-AUTISM [728-8476], ext. 16. Autism is on the rise. The CDC recently reported that autism occurs 1 in 250 births. One thing is very clear: awareness of this crisis must be expanded so that every household in America understands the seriousness of the current situation. It is with this goal in mind that leading autism agencies in the New York Metro Area have teamed up with the New York Mets for a special eventChaired by New York State Assemblymember Mark Weprin, Autism Awareness Day at Shea Stadium is scheduled for Sunday, April 27, 2003. Baseball has long been considered America’s pastime, steeped in a tradition of bringing families together to root for the home team. Now, with the help of the New York Mets and our sponsors, and they will have something else to cheer about – increasing autism awareness so that we can increase our ability to combat this disorder. All to often, when children are diagnosed with autism, family members have no idea how to proceed. That is why Autism Awareness Day is also going to a day of outreach. Volunteers will be staffing information tables at the stadium, answering questions related to autism and the services that are available, and distributing information about who families can contact in order to receive immediate help. The need for an increase in autism awareness is so great that local autism organizations in the Metro Area have rallied around this event. The autism agencies that are hosting Autism Awareness Day include Eden II from Staten Island; Quality Service for the Autism Community (QSAC), the Autism Society of America Queens Chapter, and Tender Care Human Services from Queens; Parents of Autistic Children Need Guidance Education Love and Support (ANGELS) from the Bronx; Association in Metroarea for Autistic Children (AMAC) and the Elija Foundation from Manhattan; the Nassau Suffolk Chapter of the Autism Society of America and Nassau Suffolk Service for Autism (NSSA), North Shore/LIJ Health System Center for Autism and Genesis from Nassau; and ASCENT and the Developmental Disabilities Institute from Suffolk. Anyone interested in attending this event or helping to organize it can call |