Tagged: girls

Light It Up Blue

April marks Autism Awareness month and today, April 2nd, is World Autism Awareness Day!  What do you know about autism?  I have to admit, before college I was not very aware of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism.  And then I met Ashley.  She was an education major at Luther College who specialized in Special Education.  Ashley was a strong advocate of autism.  I learned so much from her and how common it really was in children.

Did you know that ASD affects 1 in 88 children, and is most common in boys?  Autism Spectrum Disorder is a disorder of brain development.  There are many degrees of autism, many of which have to do with social interaction, communication (nonverbal and verbal) and repetitive behaviors.

Autism is a very complex disorder, however, many with ASD excel in art, music and math.  Matt Savage was born in 1992 with autism and at the age of 8 had already been labeled a jazz prodigy.  Ah-mazing, right?!

Autism is much more common than you and I think.  According to AutismSpeaks.org, more children are diagnosed with autism than, “are affected by diabetes, AIDS, cancer, cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy or Down syndrome, combined.”

It’s not only more common, but it’s growing.  Please help these young boys and girls!  Autism affects 1 in 88 children and autism research receives less than 5% if the research funding of less prevalent childhood disease.

Here are some ways you can help:

Please consider helping in any way you can!  Are there buildings in your city that have been lit up with blue lights tonight?  Look at the Sydney Opera House!  BEA-utiful!

Be Kind

Working at a makeup store is one of the most fun jobs a girl could ever have.  I LOVE getting to try the newest products from brands like Urban Decay, Smashbox, tarte, and Bare Minerals, just to name a few.  Being a girl is so much fun and I am reminded it every day.

The Kind Campaign, however, brings to light, that not every day is great in girl world.  The founders, Lauren Parsekian and Molly Thompson, and their mothers documented their journey across the United States, creating awareness of girl-against-girl bullying and what they are doing to make sure it stops.  It is their mission to establish a school program to end school bullying among young girls.

Finding Kind

Check out this video to find out more about this project!  If you have girl friends, daughters, sisters, cousins, nieces, or mothers, remind each of them, that this girl-against-girl hatred needs to stop.  Just like Linda Daugherty says at the end of the movie, “We may not all be a beautiful.  We may not all be smart. We may not all be talented, but we CAN all be kind.”