Austism's Angels: Local Couple Starts HEAL Foundation By Patricia Crosby First Coast News

By Patricia Crosby
First Coast News

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- In this country, one in 150 children are diagnosed with autism.

"It's a crisis like we have never seen before in this country," said Leslie Weed, the co-founder of HEAL which stands for Healing Every Autistic Life.

Leslie and her husband Bobby Weed both know the pain and struggles of autism first-hand.

Their youngest daughter Lanier is autistic.

When Lanier was only about 2 years old, two doctors told the Weeds to institutionalize her.

"I came home and cried for about two weeks, and I pulled up myself from the boot straps and said, 'I'm going to prove I can turn this thing around.'"

Leslie started reading everything she could on autism, and seeing specialist after specialist.

She even has her own library on autism at home now, including thousands of pages of her own notes.

With what the Weeds have learned about autism and all the therapy, Lanier is slowing coming out of her autistic world.

She is still not verbal, but she's very social, has learned sign language, the ABCs and recently how to count.

"I think when you get a diagnosis of autism, it's a death in peoples' minds. It's over, no ray of sunshine," said Leslie. "But there is so much sunshine in this."

"That's why she and her husband started HEAL. They want to help others find their way out of the darkness. HEAL's goal is to help provide treatments for parents who can't afford all the therapies, and to support other local groups helping with autism, and long-term to build a home where families can come and get support as well as medical help.

To help HEAL accomplish these goals is the PGA Tour's TPC Sawgrass.

It is hosting a fundraiser called "The Valley of Dreams" on June 28 and 29.

There will be a gala that includes guest speaker Jenny McCarthy who is also the mother of a child with autism.

There will be a golf tournament on the newly redesigned Dye's Valley Course.

Pete Dye and Bobby Weed both designed the course years ago, and recently oversaw the renovations.

If you'd like to be a sponsor or play in the tournament just call 904-285-5651.

This story can be found on FirstCoastNews.com at http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/news-article.aspx?storyid=81625.

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