Idil Abdull, Parent and Co-Founder: idilabdull@saafmn.org
When my son Abdullahi was first diagnosed with autism at age three, I felt angry, sad and confused because I have never heard of the word Autism before.  I had no idea what to do next and how to help my son.  A mother’s job is to help her child with whatever life throws at them, but when the doctor told me there is no known cause and cure for autism, I felt helpless and hopeless. 

I remember crying for what seemed forever. After I realized to be thankful that god blessed me with a beautiful son, I saw the hope in him and the help he needed from his mother.  I rolled up my sleeves and went to work by reading every autism book I could find and going online for any help to give my son the help and hope he and countless others need and deserve.  I would not change a thing about my son Abdullahi.  He is a happy and loving child and I thank god everyday for him. There is HELP and There is HOPE not just for my son but for all of our children.

When I initially noticed the high number of Somali born kids in Minneapolis pre-school autism classes, I was shocked.  I started contacting the Minnesota education department to see if they were aware and what they were going to do about it.  I contacted Minnesota health department to see if they were aware and what they were going to do about it.  I also contacted a local news channel (WCCO) to do a story on what I saw in the schools and they agreed. 

As a result, awareness has been raised which will help parents get their children into early identification and early intervention.  I am extremely excited and grateful to how far the issue of Somali children and Autism has come and all of the progress we have made thus far.  However, this is just the beginning.  We must do more to help the families and provide a clear road map as well as to find out the reason for the high rate.  I am very optimistic and confident that the Autism puzzle will be solved.

Istahil Maalin, Parent and Co-Founder: istahilmoalin@saafmn.org

When I found out my son Ahmed had autism he was two years and five months. I didn't know what autism was and never heard of it.  This time was very hard for our family. I believe my son was one of the first Somali children to be diagnosed with this disorder which we still can not believe how many Somali kids have it.  It is becoming as common as Somali tea.  I think now every Somali person in Minnesota either has a child with autism, is related to or is a neighbor of.  I think we must find out answers for these families.

Abdisalan A/wahab X. Hussein, abdisalan@saafmn.org
Abdisalan has been a Somali advocate for over ten years. he was one of the first Somalis to settle in Minnesota and was part of the first Somali community in Minneapolis. He is a leader in our community and will be a strong advocate and voice for all of our children with autism and their families. We welcome Abdisalan to SAAF and we are glad that he joined us. 

Abdull Diriya, has a son with autism and a daughter with autism: Abdull@saafmn.org 

To have one child with autism is extremely painful, to have both of your children diagnosed with life long disability is pain, despair and frustration that you could not even explain. With my son Ismail who is now doing really well and is verbal, I worked very hard almost over 50 hours of therapy, many of them doing them on my own. The saying if you met one person with autism - you met one person with autism is very true because my two children have autism very differently. My daughter Maryem has classic autism which is typical for most Somali American Children. We as a society have to find answers for all children with autism because it has completely changed our life and our future 100%. Nevertheless, I believe that God does not give anyone more than they can handle and we have to have faith our kids will get better.

From Left to Right, Istahil Malin, Idil Abdull, Senator Amy Klobuchar and Mohamed Ali.



Idil Abdull and Abdullahi on his Birthday!



                            State Senator Hann and Idil


 
Idil and Abdullahi at the Lake in Minneapolis.