As many of you know, about 1 year ago my younger son was diagnosed with autism.  Before that time, I had brief encounters with children on the autism spectrum during my pediatric rotations of medical school.  But my first sustained exposure to it was with Jack Robbins, the son of my wife’s cousins Brent and Carla.  We lived in the same neighborhood with them when they received Jack’s diagnosis.  Since then we have witnessed how they’ve given all of themselves to provide him with the best life possible.  Their courage and love serve as an inspiring example for us in our experience with our son.  

In recent days, Jack has become a bit of a celebrity. His family realized that what they thought were meaningless sounds were actually Jack singing Katy Perry’s song “Roar.”  This was the first time he had meaningfully put words together on his own.  Carla and Brent put the video on YouTube and it’s become a viral hit with features on Yahoo and Huff Post.  Here is a link to Carla and Jack being interviewed on their local TV station.