CLERMONT, Fla. — April is Autism Awareness month, and the Clermont Fire Department is raising money for autism programs and resources within the city — something officials say was inspired by one of the firefighters’ sons.

People who know him say there’s something everyone can learn from Charlie. Even mom Ashley Casler and little brother Grayson say they are learning, too.

"It is very busy, there’s never a dull moment that’s for sure," Ashley said.

Charlie is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, which Ashley said she had heard of but never had encountered. Now she shuffles through books educating herself on how to better care for Charlie.

"It’s been an interesting journey because five months into the pandemic is when we got Charlie’s diagnosis," she said. "Nine months later, we were able to start ABA services."

ABA therapy stands for Applied Behavioral Analysis, which Ashley said is critical after a young child gets put on the spectrum.

Ashley said that because of ABA, "We’re able to get a good pulse at what he’s able to do, what his skill sets really are."

As part of Charlie’s day-to-day life, he gets playtime and puzzles so he can catch up to other children in his age, but experts say ABA therapy looks different depending on the child's needs. 

The hope for Charlie is that he will be able to head into kindergarten next fall. 

"Early intervention is everything," Ashley said, "to help them to learn how to talk and just be able to thrive in today’s world."

While it’s a critical part of Charlie’s life, not every family has access to ABA therapy. Ashley said many are put on long waiting lists, which can be as long as a year, or more.

She said the reason it takes so long is because each child's case needs a board-certified behavior analyst to manage his or her care plan before services can begin.

Ashley said there were less than 100 of them in the state of Florida when they began services 18 months ago. Since then, she said the demand for services is far higher than the current number of providers, and that doesn't even take the cost into account.

"These different therapies that Charlie needs — if you don’t have private insurance, it is a good question: How are you gonna pay for it?" Ashley said.

According to Autism Parenting Magazine, to have an ABA therapist for 40 hours a week — which is the amount Charlie's parents say he gets — it’s about $250,000 a year without insurance. That’s why Charlie’s dad, Rick, who works with the Clermont Fire Department, is having a fundraiser — not for his family, but for those who may not have access to the same resources.

"It affects all walks of life in our entire community, and having everyone band together it’s only going to give access and let other people know who might be going through something that those resources are available," he said.

The fundraiser was started by Clermont Professional Firefighters Local 4350's Mike Rock, who heard Charlie's story and wanted to find a way to help. Previously, the department did T-shirt fundraisers, selling the same shirts firefighters would wear on-duty for that month.

Rock said it was also a good way to connect firefighters to the community. 

The art on the T-shirts being sold was done by Charlie himself. The fundraiser ends at the end of the month. After that, the firefighters will count all the money and send it off to different local autism originations.

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