Parents of children with autism now have no-nonsense advice about raising an autistic child from someone who should know – former St. Louis native Areva Martin, now an attorney in Los Angeles. Her book, “The Everyday Advocate,” teaches real-world step-by-step fundamentals on how to assert yourself and get the results you want for your child. Her 11-year-old son Marty was diagnosed with autism at age 2, and found it frustrating that there was no primer to address her issues as a parent.
“I knew on a day-to day-basis, I needed information on just, how do I get through a morning? How do I get a child who has meltdowns and tantrums out of the bathroom in order to get to school on time?” Martin explained. “There are so many unanswered questions, and I couldn’t find a good road map … And that’s what I wanted to do and what I have done with The Everyday Advocate, is provide parents with a road map to say, while we continue to advocate and fight for a cure, I want you to have some very practical information about how to deal with the condition on a day-to-day basis.”
A book signing for Martin and “The Everyday Advocate” will be held Thursday, April 29 at 7:00 p.m. at Left Bank Books, 399 N. Euclid in the Central West End.
Martin a Rosati-Kain alumni and is a Harvard trained individual rights attorney, and cofounder of Special Needs Network – created specifically for families of color. Through the Network, Martin has helped hundreds of families get access to services and programs for children with autism. She has made expert television appearances on, Dr. Phil, as well as guest spots on NPR, Court TV Radio Television and Fox News. Martin now lives in Los Angeles with her husband and three children.
For more information, on her work on behalf of children with autism and their families, go to www.specialneedsnetwork.net.
