When a child is diagnosed with cancer, families know immediately what to do. Their doctor gets them to a cancer treatment facility in Providence or Boston, and the whirlwind of testing and treatments begin.

Not so when a child is diagnosed with autism.

When a child is identified on the "autism spectrum disorder," or ASD, families are mostly on their own. They get a few pamphlets from the doctor's office, and they Google "autism" at night while trying to make sense of how the world just shifted around them. It can be a confusing time, with families left mostly on their own to understand what "autism" even means.

This dynamic repeats itself more frequently than most people realize, as the rates of autism (or autism diagnosis) are steadily rising. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control now estimates that 1 in 68 people are somewhere on the autism spectrum. Those affected range from the severe — individuals totally isolated in their own worlds — to the high-functioning — people with social quirks and oddities that most would consider "weird."

Apply this 1:68 rate to Rhode Island, and there could be as many as 10,000 Rhode Islanders affected by autism — approximately 2,000 in the East Bay region.

This alarming growth of autism led a small group of Bristol Rotarians to act. Months ago, they launched an ambitious effort to open an autism support center here in Bristol County, to help those families grappling with the many challenges of autism.

In less than two weeks, that idea becomes reality.

With a $10,000 boost from a well-known Bristol benefactor, and with more than a hundred families already expressing an interest in the project, the The Autism Project-East Bay Support Center will open on Monday, Sept 14.

The Autism Project

The Autism Project is an organization well-known in the Rhode Island autism community. Nearly two decades ago, a group of special educators, therapists and parents of children with autism grew frustrated with the lack of resources and education in this region. They formed The Autism Project and began raising money and organizing services.

Today, they operate year-round out of a facility in Johnston, offering support groups, training for parents and professionals, social skills groups for young people, a highly popular summer camp, and an array of services.

Many in the East Bay travel to Johnston weeknights or weekends, but many more do not. Joanne Quinn, executive director of The Autism Project, said they have historically seen very low representation from the East Bay, with distance and rush-hour travel through Providence the most likely reasons. They hope to change that with the opening of the East Bay center this month.

“With a local office and presence, The Autism Project is now able to provide East Bay residents for the first time with resources and programming  designed to help children, teens and adults with ASD find success and independence,” Ms. Quinn said.

Ms. Quinn and her team are working with a large, collaborative advisory council to get the center opened. They include members of the Bristol Rotary Charities Foundation, the Bristol Warren Regional School District (specifically, Superintendent Mario Andrade), representatives from the Bristol, Warren and Barrington town councils, the Barrington school department, and Bradley Hospital.

Opening at Highlander

So far, the group has secured three location for East Bay autism services, with the primary home at the new Highlander Charter School on Route 136 in Warren. Considered easily accessible from all areas, with ample parking and a school environment, the former Our Lady of Fatima facility will host many of the East Bay services.

Mt. Hope High School and the East Bay Chamber of Commerce have also donated space that can accommodate larger groups, as would be expected for group training sessions.

Space is one thing. Money is another. Organizers estimate it will cost up to $40,000 annually to staff and operate the center, and all of that must be raised through public and private channels.

Though the Town of Bristol gave $1,000 to the cause this spring, and Bristol Rotary programs have raised at least $1,000 more, the center got a huge boost when former Bristol Rotary Club president John Andrade, retired from the John Andrade Insurance Co., gave $10,000 to the cause. In his note of support he wrote, "It is a tremendously worthwhile endeavor, and it is our hope that the contribution will encourage others to support this program and that it will have a positive impact on autistic children and their families in our area."

Good Old Days Sept. 19

Another member of the advisory council is David Frerichs of Warren, town councilor and owner of Frerichs Farm. Mr. Frerichs and his wife, Barbara, have immediate family members with autism and have been longtime supporters of The Autism Project. On Sept. 19, their farm will host a huge fund-raising event. The Good Old Days celebration includes an old-fashioned fair with an array of free family activities, as well as a chicken barbecue dinner.

In October, Katherine Quinn of the Anthony Quinn Foundation is hosting an invitation-only dinner event, with proceeds to benefit the East Bay autism center.

More immediately, the Bristol Rotary Club's annual Luau on Sept. 12 will raise money for the autism support center.

Said Bruce Cox, president of Bristol Rotary Charities Foundation, “Supporting this project is important to us and to other Rotary clubs in the East Bay. That's why we created an advisory council of community leaders committed to bringing support and resources to the project, and to reflect the community’s commitment to its citizens in need.”

To learn more about the center and to get updates on its schedule of services, visit The Autism Project.