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By Mary Romaniec
Grafton News Reporter –
There is underlying nobility in the character of Joe St. Jean. As a nonverbal middle school student with severe autism, how else could he inspire so many to find their own nobility if not for what he intrinsically exudes.
Unlike most students with autism, Joe finds himself in the enviable position of being surrounded by true friends, those that have his back and those that make sure he never feels left out from social connecting with peers. They describe Joe in such a way that their own efforts to be noble are entirely inspired by his unspoken charisma.
With Joe in mind, fellow 8th graders Dominic Hanna, Tommy Waller, Kelsey Sidman and Avery Hensen spearheaded their own autism awareness campaign by starting a T-shirt sale program to benefit sending children with autism to summer camp. Besides, it gave these friends a way of telling others about their friend Joe, who faces daily challenges but still manages to inspire those around him.
“Everybody says to us how we have changed Joe’s life, but from my perspective, he’s changed my life,” said Hanna. “I love that I get to have him in my life as much as he gets to have me in his life.” The four students have made it their personal mission since fourth grade to include Joe in their world socially and in all other ways that reflect human kindness, decency and true kinship. And it is from this perspective they hope to inspire the rest of the community to know about Joe, and autism in general, while raising funds to send other children to camp.
Hanna’s father, Gary Hanna, helped coordinate the T-shirt design and getting the shirts printed and ready for sale. The blue shirt reads “My friend has autism. What’s your superpower?” and has an A emblem with puzzle pieces on the front.
Initially the group wanted an S shape similar to the Superman design but it infringed on Marvel copyright, so it was redesigned by John Grosser of Alltype Digital Graphics, who happens to also have a child with autism. Once the design was released on social media, orders began to trickle in. Then Pam Renzoni, an aide at South Grafton Elementary, rounded up support from her fellow staff members to purchase the shirt at $19.95 each, bringing in 58 additional orders. Millbury Street Elementary staff followed suit and coordinated to wear their shirt the same day, bringing in 59 additional shirt orders.
“I thought it was wonderful that these kids wanted other kids to experience what they do,” said Renzoni who took orders and collected money from her colleagues. They picked April 5 as the day they would wear the shirts in honor of Autism Awareness month.
For the staff at the two schools, the T-shirt was personal after the death of their colleague Kim Saborin, a placement specialist in the district’s special education department. “It became more important because of Kim” said Renzoni.
Joe’s mother, Leslie St. Jean, did the initial legwork to find a charity that the students could connect with after the students came to her with their idea of raising money and awareness.
She reached out to Sue Loring of the Autism Resource Central in West Boylston and determined that sending a child to camp was something tangible the students could set a goal to do. With lessons in entrepreneurship, calculations were made that for every 80 T-shirts sold they could send a child. “They all look at Joe as their gift,” said Leslie St. Jean. “Joe has taught them so much.”
Leslie describes how each of the students has become his best behavior therapists. She said his social skills services are no longer included on his Individual Education Plan because his friends already have it figured out which social skills they plan to work on next with Joe. “They all look out for Joe,” she said. “He is definitely more verbal now than ever … because of [his friends.”]
Joe’s confidence level has increased through his interaction with his typical friends. But the real worth is seeing how much his friends have grown in confidence and poise.
For Gary Hanna, the value of the T-shirt campaign hit home when he watched Dominic and Joe together at an event. They both light up in each other’s company, Hanna explained. “The two of them together made me realize what this whole project was about,” said Hanna.
He then reflected on Dominic’s poise with a glint of fatherly pride by adding, “His ability to stand in front of a crowd, and to be so well spoken, makes me very proud of him. We have four local kids in this community making this effort.”
The goal is to continue to sell the shirts through the end of the school year. So far they have raised enough to send two children to camp.
For more information on the T-shirt project, go to theautismshirt.org.
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