Autism Around Alberta Newsletter - Autism Society Alberta

As President of Autism Society Alberta, I have the task of trying to convey what Deborah meant to our community and to myself. It is a difficult task, and one that I take very seriously. Deborah’s passing leaves a chasm in our community efforts on topics such as Who Will Take Care of Our Kids and employment for those with disabilities. She was a great activist in our community. She was a resource whose departure will impact the effectiveness of our efforts for many years.

It is sad that you often kick yourself after a loss, telling yourself “I wish I told them what they meant to me and our community while they were alive”. I feel I missed the opportunity to truly tell Deb this personally, so I am choosing to do the next best thing I can think of and tell anyone else that will listen. I was first introduced to Deborah about eight years ago, when I was looking to build service offerings for children with disabilities. Within 24 hours of meeting Deborah, she had a dental emergency, and asked me to make a speech and accept a large donation for Autism Society Alberta at a dinner event. In the years that followed, she always provided me with great advice and even greater mentoring, which helped me to eventually realize the importance of the words in that first speech.

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