Dedicated to Our Sons
Brandon and Stephen - 2011
That Sums Up Our Thoughts Nicely
Our two boys, Brandon (age 15 in Dec 2011) and Stephen (age 8 in Feb. 2011), were both diagnosed with Autism at age 2. They have received many benefits from early
diagnosis/intervention and associated therapy. Our boys have significantly different issues and challenges.
Brandon's issues are more associated with behavior and anger, while we are working very hard with Stephen to increase his language skills. Stephen has a very pleasant
disposition most of the time, and isn't as prone to the anger and tantrums that Brandon can display. Brandon has improved his behavior greatly and is on a
much more positive track.
2011 continues to be a rewarding yet challenging year for us and the boys. We have sought out extensive help for Brandon from his teachers, doctors, and therapists, and
have had great success. Brandon just started at the Springall Academy in San Carlos, and is doing well. We are committed to getting him all the help that he needs to
function, both academically and socially. Stephen is also getting some very special attention at his school (Children's Workshop). We definitely have our hands full
dealing with both of the boys and their various issues. While it would be very easy to let all of these issues get us down, and sometimes they do, Ann and I try to
maintain a positive attitude as best we can. We are committed to investigating whatever services, therapies, and activities we can find that can provide benefits
for our boys. Enter the story about our Christmas Lighting display...
During the Christmas season in 2005, Brandon suddenly got very interested in all the lights and decorations in our neighborhood. For the first time that year,
we were able to drive around and look at other Holiday displays without the usual tantrums and other behavioral issues that had previously caused us to cut our outings short.
When we saw that he was very interested in other Christmas Lighting displays, we came up with the idea that maybe we could catch his interest
by building our own Christmas display and it could be something that Dad and Brandon could work on together! Brandon was very enthusiastic about the idea, so
we decided to jump in with both feet after Christmas in 2005. We started early and worked all year after that to create our first large scale Christmas lighting
display from scratch.
Our first effort debuted in Christmas 2006 and was a huge success. We had a great time planning, purchasing, building, and installing all of the pieces
of the display. There was great community interest, and we were featured by local TV station KFMB our first year. The San Diego Union-Tribune ran
a very inspirational story on Christmas Eve day in 2006 (see the Links page). In addition, we also received many nice comments from the visitors that
came to see the display. But the main thing for us was that Brandon LOVED the display. Dad and Brandon made a special connection that year, and
we were determined to keep the momentum going.
After those first few years, we continued to add more home-built decorations to the display and also added more songs to the playlist).
We had some additional TV coverage (see Links page), and collected many positive comments in our display guestbook. Brandon's interest was shifting from the actual
lighting display to the "behind the scenes" equipment and programming that it took to run the display. We focused much of our spare time working together
in the garage on various items for the display. Autism or not, how many parents can say that their 13 or 14 year-old has the skills or patience to program lighting
effects via computer or build & test lighting samples and prototypes? Our display has now become a tradition for our family as well as for the community. We like
to say that we're building lifetime memories for our family and the community. When we're outside doing yardwork during the year, many of the people walking by have
nice things to say about the previous display. "We can't wait until next year" is the common theme. Ann and I would like to thank everyone for supporting
our Display, our boys, and our efforts (especially our neighbors). It means a lot, and makes our Christmas very enjoyable and meaningful. For our upcoming 2011 display, as always,
we're raising the bar by adding more lights, more technology, and more fun! This is your personal invitation to stop by with your family and pay us
a visit when we get the display up and running this year on Saturday after Thanksgiving. It is shaping up to be another fantastic Christmas holiday at
Belardo Lights in 2011 !!!
There are lots of challenges raising two boys with Autism. Fortunately, we have received a lot of help and support from our families, and the various
teachers and therapists that we see for the boys. Brandon, in particular, has always had a great time with Dad when we're doing anything related to the Display.
It puts him in a good mood because of his love for all things electric, and really seems to give us a purpose or goal that we can both look forward to throughout the year.
We're committed to keep our Christmas Lighting tradition alive! It's brought the whole family closer together, which is a good thing. Even young
Stephen loves to spend time in the garage with all the construction activities going on throughout the year. The display has given us a way for us to connect and make lifetime
memories with our boys. It's magnified even more once the Display goes up and is operational. Many times I find myself outside looking at the Display, full of emotion.
It's hard to explain; it's the culmination of all of our work and preparation for the Display, but also a celebration of our triumph of the
difficulties of raising two boys with Autism. The challenges stack up, but so do the rewards. And in the end, we really cherish the rewards.
We hope you have enjoyed our story and now understand how inspirational the Christmas Light display is for our family. Thanks again for coming to our website! We
really hope you will be able to stop by and see our Belardo Lights display during the upcoming Holiday season...Please tell your friends about it as well. We'll have a
guestbook placed by the mailbox if you'd like to write us a note about the display or a special message for Brandon and Stephen, and a handout with some additional
information about the display.
As the fortune cookie above says so well, "You can fix it with a little extra energy and a positive attitude." We believe that, and we invite you and your family
to stop by and check out the 2011 Belardo Lights display. We'd like to help build some lifetime memories for your family as well...Help us dream big!
Sincerely,
Randy, Ann, Brandon, and Stephen Schimka
rschimka (at) san.rr.com
