THE AUTISM CHANNEL FOUNDATION, INC.
W. PALM BEACH, FLORIDA

From the beginning of The Autism Channel, we have had the support of an outstanding number of autism, business and public relations experts as advisors. While our advisors were protecting us from ever creating a misstep, the principal gift of learning has come mostly from those with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). A professional training program for first responders in dealing with ASD persons. The event in Palm Beach County was paid for entirely by the The Autism Channel foundation and co-presented with Florida Atlantic University and the Autism Society of America. When a first responder interfaces with a child or even some adults; is often a case of two people who simply don’t understand each other. For example, if police parking sees a teen on the spectrum in a space that notes that the parking here is for police only, the person on the spectrum simply believes that if a squad car can park there why can’t he? Children with ASD often want to be outside, they love nature and are attracted to water. In a large number of elopements, children are often found unresponsive in bodies of water such as lakes, swimming pools, and ponds. Some devices can track the whereabouts of children using GPS technology. These units that can cost $1000 and more are not affordable to most middle and low-income families. Recently a young boy in our local area had eloped for the third time. The family lived day to day and knew that this boy was headed for disaster. The Autism Channel Foundation donated just such a tracking device and purchased a unit along with two years of GPS tracking. It is also our plan to pay one full-time employee to subtitle all of our programming. We currently are seen in more than 20 countries, and as our viewers grow, we are sure we will be seen in more than 50 countries. Providing subtitles and more than 50 different tongues is not only an asset to improve our channel (and viewer-ship) but also an outstanding service for the hearing impaired community. We intend to allocate $32,000 (yearly) salary for such an employee. Without the foundation’s funding, the channel cannot currently support the cost of such an employee. When and if the grant has approved the foundation will establish an irrevocable trust for the named autistic person and funds will be released when he or she becomes an adult, as recognized by their home state. The Autism Channel Foundation will seed this find with an initial deposit of $10,000.00 and attempt to arrange for other family members to pay into the trust during the years that the trust is maturing. While we created our intern program to teach, and give life experience to young people (each is unique), we have learned a great deal from working with them on a nearly daily basis. In many situations, we have been in a position to work closely with the parents of our interns, many of whom are on the autism spectrum themselves. We (in most cases) provide interns meals and transportation at our expense, nor do they pay for their learning experience. The co-founders/owners have invested just under one million dollars in the channel, knowing that when the audience reaches its potential, we will reach a solid financial position. 100% OF ALL DONATIONS ARE USED TO HELP THOSE WITH ASD. THE FOUNDATION BOARD AND EMPLOYEES RECEIVE NO PAYMENT. PHYSICAL LOCATION IS PROVIDED BY THE AUTISM CHANNEL AND FLYING PIG RANCH STUDIOS. THE AUTISM CHANNEL FOUNDATION