Adam Bateman has autism and struggles to speak.
He sits on the couch with his aide, Elysia Hickox, typing on a small keyboard on his lap, talking about the Stars for Life car draw.
“The sales have been great,” says a voice resembling scientist Stephen Hawkings coming from his keyboard.
However, Carolyn Bateman, president of Stars for Life and Adam’s mother, said ticket sales for their annual draw are down this year.
The tickets are $100 each, or three for $250.
“Most people are just buying one ticket this year, when they would usually buy three. The economy is hitting,” she said.
Every year, Stars for Life has an annual draw for a Mustang or $25,000 cash.
The prize comes out of money raised from ticket sales and the profit goes to Stars for Life.
This year, they have already paid for the prize and are just trying to make as much profit as possible, said Bateman.
Profits go to their housing project. It will be a resource centre for families and a place to teach social skills to autistics.
Eventually, with the help of the government, Stars for Life hopes to have young autistics living there, said Bateman.
The costs would be high. They would need constant caregivers, and the residents would have to pay out of their government funding.
The Stars for Life foundation works with high functioning adults with autism. They are paired with aides who take them to class while they earn degrees.
This shows the public that people with autism are academically equal and can function properly. Their problems tend to be in other areas, such as social behaviour, said Hickox.
