Buddy for Brooks

Hello, my name is Brooks!  I love to play Roblox and I love to sit with my cats and I love my mom.  I am 8 years old and I want to be a scientist when I grow up.  I love science and I like to learn all about the Universe and tell my mom all about black holes, worm holes, and space travel.

Brooks is 8 years old and was diagnosed with ASD when he was five years old.  We suspected something before that time and had already initiated speech therapy and occupational therapy for developmental and speech delays.  We have been fortunate to have an amazing school to work with that has helped us develop a comprehensive IEP tailored to his needs.  Brooks has been in a self-contained ASD classroom since Kindergarten and during that time he has continued to show accelerated learning in a variety of areas.  Brooks has easily become one of the most intelligent little men that I know.  He astounds me daily with how he sees the World and has taught me more patience and how to be a better mother and person.  

Brooks was tested for and was eligible for Gifted during his last school year.  He was able to leave his self-contained classroom for one hour during the week to participate in Math in a gifted setting.  This was such a huge accomplishment for Brooks and allowed him a setting that challenged his logical thinking and pushed him to continue to learn.  It would be excellent for Brooks to be able to move into a more Mainstream setting in school to encourage  his academic growth, but currently Brooks is not able to move into that setting as it would pose difficulties for him.  

Brooks has a lot of anxiety in different situations and this creates a lot of difficulty for him.  Brooks will often "shut down" and retreat from a task or situation that is causing him anxiety, over stimulation, or challenges.  He is unable to easily  move past this on his own and in his self-contained classroom requires some time to settle.  When he has the help of another person to apply deep pressure with a hug and to listen to the issue at hand, Brooks is able to more easily move forward.  At home, this is also the case and when he is upset or overwhelmed he needs to be physically pulled away from the object of his current obsession and given a deep and long hug.  This reminds him to practice deep breathing and allows him to see that he can move past whatever has caused him to obsess over a situation. 

The idea of a service dog trained to assist children with autism started about 1 year ago.  The idea that my little guy could have a constant companion that would be trained to terminate repetitive motions, apply deep pressure therapy, and provide constant companionship was more than I could even imagine, but we waited.  I wanted to make sure that Brooks would be able to put the needs of his service dog above his own and would be able to understand his needs and provide for them.  The Quarantine of 2020 allowed us to develop better animal husbandry as Brooks was tasked with the care of our cats at home.  He truly benefited from their increased interactions and the trust that was shown to him from our feline companions.  Brooks would watch YouTube videos on how to "communicate" with our cats so that they could "better understand" each other.  This showed me that perhaps he was ready to take on more responsibility and to enter into mutually beneficial friendship with a service dog.  

Finally, the simple facts that new social distancing guidelines associated with Corona virus will  make  the techniques that were previously utilized in his classroom impossible for the foreseeable future.  I am not sure when the ability to use HUGS and close interaction will be allowed to be re-incorporated into his classrooms and a service dog will fill that very huge gap for Brooks.  The idea that Brooks will have his own champion at his side to help him walk through the good times and the bad times is almost too much for me to imagine!  

New Horizon Service Dogs trains and provides service dogs to families at NO COST TO THE FAMILY.  These dogs are specialized and trained.  Raising and training service dogs is extremely expensive and cost in the neighborhood of $25,000 per dog.  New Horizon only ask that you attempt to raise funds to help off set the cost.  Please consider donating to this amazing organization and to help Brooks bring his best friend home.