Families with ASD

Families with ASD was founded in 2005 by Gregory and Julia Ann Smith. Their oldest son, Luke, was diagnosed with Autism in 1998 when the rate of Autism was 1 in 10,000. At the age of 9 years, Luke started having major medical and behavioral issues with his Autism. They needed someone who understood what they were living with 24/7, so they reached out to other families that had a child with autism. They also wanted support for their youngest son, Joel. He was having a hard time with Luke's meltdowns, and needed to be around other siblings. The first Families with ASD Autism Family Support Group meeting was held on March 4, 2005. 7 families attended the first meeting. In December of 2005, when the membership had grown to over 50 families, Julia and Greg applied for a 501 (c ) 3 public charity status, and was awarded it in February of 2006.

In September of 2006, Families with ASD hosted their first Autism Expo, and Julia put together her first Autism Yellow Pages © . Over 2,200 people attended their first Autism Expo which was held at the Anderson Hills United Methodist Church on Beechmont Ave, in Cincinnati, OH. Since that day, over 16,000 people have attended the free annual family event, and over 15,000 copies of Julia's Autism Yellow Pages© have been printed and handed out FREE to families, schools, churches, doctors's offices, and other organizations.

In 2008, Families with ASD opened the first in the Greater Cincinnati/ Northern Kentucky area, Autism Family Resource Center which serves as a "Point of Entry" to families new and old to the Autism diagnosis. The Autism Family Resource Center is located in Milford, OH, and currently serves over 500 families that live with autism in the Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky area.

Over the years, as their son has grown, the focus of Families with ASD's Mission has broaden to include adults with autism. Luke is going to be 17 years old this year, and the Smith family knows that by age 22years, Luke will be "aged out" of school services. They founded the Adults with Autism Task force in 2009 which is working towards Adult Autism Awareness with the "I Am an Adult with Autism"(TM) awareness program, and hold Adult with Autism Classes and Social at the Autism Center.

Families with ASD is here for you. We have no membership fee, and everyone touched by autism is invited to take part in our many free monthly activities, from our "Out and About with Autism" events, or one of our many free events, parties that we hold at the Autism Center. Families are always welcome to drop by the Autism Center on Saturday's from 12 noon to 4p.m., or if you need to talk to someone, just leave a message at 513-444-4979. One of our volunteers will be happy to call you back and answer your questions, or just be there to listen. We want you to know, you are not alone. We are here for you.
Luke Age 16