ABOUT 50 people attended a barbecue at St Brigid's Hall on Saturday April 5 to help raise awareness of autism in the Collie community.
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The event was organised by Sam Brojanowski, whose two-and-a-half-year-old son Nate has autism.
"We wanted to organise an event during Autism Awareness month to allow children with autism, their friends, carers and other members of the community to find out more about the condition," she said.
"We felt it was important to educate the community about how to be respectful and how to interact with people who have autism. People need to understand they are not being rude, they just see things differently."
Mrs Brojanowski said she and her husband Paul were told of Nate's diagnosis when he was two.
"Children with autism have problems with communication and in social situations," she said.
"In Nate's instance, he doesn't talk so he has to communicate in other ways.
"As with anyone who has a disabled child, it affects many aspects of family life.
"I stay home from work to care for Nate. Little things like going to the shops require more forward planning.
"We are hopeful with therapy Nate will be able to communicate better."
But accessing autism support services had been a challenge, Mrs Brojanowski said.
"When a child is diagnosed with autism you get some government funding and a list of therapists you can access but none of those is in Collie. There are some in Bunbury and Busselton. We visit Perth fortnightly for therapy."
She said she knew of at least six families in Collie who had a child with autism.
"The rate of autism in Australia is about one in 88, so in a primary school of 400 children you are looking at four or five in that one school."
