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Walk will fund research into autism

More than 2,000 are expected at MOSI this Saturday.

By MEAGHAN FORBES
Published November 10, 2006

Shelley Sharp, a mother of a 10-year-old boy with Asperger's syndrome, is determined to raise money to find out what causes the disorder related to autism.

So she's leading a team from Dale Mabry Elementary School for Tampa's first Walk for Autism Research at the Museum of Science and Industry on Saturday. The walk is part of a national effort.

"As I think about middle school, I'm really driven to expand the options that are out there for our high-functioning kids," Sharp said.

More than 2,000 people are expected to join the walk to help raise money for autism research. The neurological disorder, which typically appears about age 3, affects one in 166 children, according to the National Alliance for Autism Research and Autism Speaks.

Boys are four times more likely to be autistic and more children will be diagnosed with the disorder this year than AIDS, diabetes and cancer combined, making it the fastest growing serious developmental disability in the country.

"It's a $90-billion epidemic expected to double in the next decade," said Helyn Moore, walk chairwoman and owner of the Relationship Development Center in Brandon, which works with autistic children.

Moore works to treat core deficits of the disorder and fill in developmental gaps. Her 11-year-old son, Michael, was diagnosed with autism at age 2.

The Tampa event is expected to be the largest of several other inaugural walks going on nationwide. So far, the local group has raised more than $60,000 and hopes to raise $100,000 by the end of the event. More than 135 teams are registered.

The walk is less than a mile through MOSI, where admission fees will be waived for walk participants. Donations will go to the national research organization, Autism Speaks.

"My hope for the walk is that we can find out what is causing this," Moore said. "My hope is that when I'm sitting in the waiting room and my grandchildren are being born, I don't have to ask if they'll have autism."

Meaghan Forbes can be reached at mforbes@sptimes.com or 226-3434.

IF YOU GO

Walk for autism

The Tampa Walk for Autism Research begins at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Museum of Science and Industry, 4801 E Fowler Ave. Registration is at 9 a.m. No pets allowed. Find details at www.autismwalk.org/tampa or call 282-9474.

[Last modified November 9, 2006, 10:57:56]