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4A | WEDNESDAY, APRIL 17, 2019 | COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL Cottage Grove Sentinel 116 N. Sixth St. Cottage Grove, Ore. 97424 NED HICKSON , MANAGING EDITOR Opinion | 541-902-3520 | NHICKSON @ CGSENTINEL . COM The First Amendment C ongress shall make no law respect- ing an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Govern- ment for a redress of grievances. “I never considered a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend.” —Thomas Jefferson (1800) Autism awareness can lower a few raised eyebrows I knew very little about the autism spectrum back in 2006, when I met the young boy who would become my son. My wife and I had been dating for several months when we de- cided it was time to introduce each other to our children. She ex- plained that he had As- perger’s Syndrome and likely wouldn’t make eye contact — and to not take it personally if he avoided any physical contact like a firm handshake. “And whatever you do, don’t tousle his hair,” she instructed with a squeeze of my hand. “He really doesn’t like that.” Autism is a neurolog- ical developmental dis- ability with symptoms generally appearing be- fore age three, impacting the development of the brain in areas of social interaction, communica- tion skills and cognitive function. It is the fastest-growing developmental disorder, affecting one in 68 chil- dren, and boys are four times more likely to have autism than girls. While it is the fast- est-growing, autism is also the least funded and, therefore, least under- their families be who they are, free from stares, apology or judgement. That’s because often- times the symptoms of autism aren’t as apparent as other developmental disorders. As a result, children with autism having a difficult time in social settings — or in ex- From the Managing Editor’s Desk Ned Hickson stood disorder. The spectrum of au- tism is wide-ranging, from those who do not speak (40 percent) to others who not only speak but whose talents have impacted the world: Wolfgang Amadeus Mo- zart, James Joyce, Albert Einstein, Emily Dickin- son, Thomas Jefferson and Dan Akroyd are just a few. Each summer, our family participates in the four-day KindTree Au- tism Camp south of Flor- ence. The mission of the Autism Rocks camp is a simple one: For four days, let those with autism and treme cases having a full meltdown — are quickly labeled as being “bratty,” “undisciplined” or simply the result of bad parent- ing. While our son, now 19, is well beyond that thanks to the support of teachers, students, family and programs that have given him the tools to un- derstand his Asperger’s, getting there wasn’t easy — particularly in those public moments under the raised-brow stare of strangers. Through the triumphs and disappointments over the last 12 years, we have always reinforced the message to our son that being autistic isn’t any different than being short or tall: Each pro- vide challenges as well as advantages in life. Being willing to accept yourself for who you are is the key to recognizing the differ- ence. Through my 20 years covering the com- munities of Florence, Mapleton and now Cottage Grove, I’ve had the privilege of meeting many par- ents of children with au- tism, as well as adults liv- ing with autism. As I mentioned, I didn’t know much about autism when my son and I met in 2006. Since then, we’ve learned a lot from each other through the jour- ney we’ve shared — in- cluding what it means for a father and son to share a firm handshake. I hope you’ll join me and other families within our community in rec- ognizing National Au- tism Awareness Month through the end of April. LETTER Remembering two remarkable local women Last week was a sad one for our community. Cottage Grove lost two of its leading philanthropists with the passing of Joy Wood- ard and Donna Shepherd. Both women were well known for their generosity in South Lane County. Over the years, we have all benefited from their thoughtful and supportive approach to the community to which they were deeply committed. South Lane Mental Health is honored to have been among the recipients of sup- port from each of these generous, community-minded women. Joy Woodard and the Wood- ard Family Foundation helped found South Lane Mental Health. When members of the Presby- terian Church recognized the need for mental health support in Cottage Grove, the Woodard family helped make that possible by donating their family home to South Lane Mental Health. The home, on West Main Street, still serves as housing for South Lane Mental Health clients. Joy’s generosity as an artist has also been enduring. Each year, when South Lane Mental Health held its Garden Tours, Joy welcomed us into her studio to choose among her many water- colors to use as poster artwork for the event. She even opened her beauti- ful garden to the public for one of the tours. Her distinctive style and beautiful artwork continue to be on display on the walls in South Lane Mental Health’s Birch Avenue offices. Donna Shepherd was a quiet, generous supporter of so much of what makes our community special. Through support from the Doyle & Donna Shepherd Foundation, South Lane Mental Health was able to move to its new offices on Birch Avenue in 2010 and expand our program- ming in later years. We are sad about the passing of both these remarkable wom- en, but their memory is alive through their gracious support of the many important — and en- during — community endeavors they made possible. Because of their generous ap- proach to philanthropy, our community will continue to be reminded of them, nearly every- where we turn. Thank you, Joy Woodard and Donna Shepherd. With gratitude, —South Lane Mental Health Board of Directors USPS#133880 Copyright 2019 © COTTAGE GROVE SENTINAL Letters to the Editor Policy The Sentinel welcomes letters to the editor as part of a community discussion of issues on the local, state and national level. Emailed letters are preferred. Handwritten or typed letters must be signed. All letters need to include full name, address and phone number; only name and city will be printed. Letters should be limited to about 300 words. Letters are subject to editing for length, grammar and clarity. Publication of any letter is not guaranteed and depends on space available and the volume of letters received. Letters that are anonymous, libelous, argumentative, sarcastic or contain accusations that are unsourced or without documentation will not be published. Letters containing poetry or from outside The Sentinel readership area will only be published at the discretion of the editor. Political/Election Letters: Election-related letters must address pertinent or timely issues of interest to our readers at-large. Letters must: 1) Not be a part of letter-writing campaigns on behalf of (or by) candidates; 2) Ensure any information about a candidate is accurate, fair and not from second-hand knowledge or hearsay; and 3) explain the reasons to support candidates based on personal experience and perspective rather than partisanship and campaign-style rhetoric. Candidates themselves may not use the letters to the editor column to outline their views and platforms or to ask for votes; this constitutes paid political advertising. As with all letters and advertising content, the newspaper, at the sole discretion of the publisher, general manager and editor, reserves the right to reject any letter that doesn’t follow the above criteria. Send letters to: nhickson@cgsentinel.com HOW TO CONTACT YOUR REPS Oregon state representatives Oregon federal representatives • Sen. Floyd Prozanski • Rep. Peter DeFazio District 4 State Senator PO Box 11511 Eugene, Ore. 97440 Phone: 541-342-2447 Email : sen.fl oydprozanski@ state.or.us (House of Representatives) 405 East 8th Ave. #2030 Eugene, Ore. 97401 Email: defazio.house.gov/ contact/email-peter Phone: 541-465-6732 • Rep. Cedric Hayden Republican District 7 State Representative 900 Court St. NE Salem, Ore. 97301 Phone: 503-986-1407 Website: www.leg.state.or. us/hayden Email: rep.cedrichayden@ state.or.us • Sen. Ron Wyden 405 East 8th Ave., Suite 2020 Eugene, Ore. 97401 Email: wyden.senate.gov Phone: (541) 431-0229 • Sen. Jeff Merkley Email: merkley.senate.gov Phone: 541-465-6750 S entinel C ottage G rove 541-942-3325 Administration Jenna Bartlett, Group Publisher Gary Manly, General Manager... Ext. 1207 gmanly@cgsentinel.com Allison Miller, Multi-Media Sales Consultant... Ext. 1213 amiller@cgsentinel.com Gerald Santana, Multi-Media Sales Consultant... 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