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Nathaniel's Story
Stepping up to the Plate for Autism By Melinda Copp
The Donchs are a regular, middle-class family of four living in Auburn, N.Y., according to David Donch. He works as a millwright at a local steel mill, and his wife, Johanna, works part-time as a clerk in the county nursing home. But this family has something very special about them that millions of families can appreciate.
"We took Nathaniel to a pediatric neurologist when he was 2 1/2 because he didn't speak well and used only one- to three-word sentences," Donch says. "He also didn't play like the other kids. He would line up toys or other objects and spend a lot of time just staring at them. If anyone moved them, he would get upset. He played alongside other kids but didn't socialize with them, except to show them and tell them about the various objects he was obsessed with."
The doctor's diagnosis is something that every parent fears autism. According to the Autism Society of America, autism is a complex developmental disability that affects the brain, impacting development in the areas of social interaction and communication skills. According to a 2007 Centers for Disease Control report, one in 150 children in America today has an autism spectrum disorder.
"The day we received diagnosis, I was first in a state of shock," Donch says. "Outside of seeing the movie Rain Man
