"If we turn our heads and look away and hope that it will all disappear then they will - all of them, an entire generation of people. And we will have only history left to judge us."
Kenneth Branagh, Gilderoy Lockhart in the Harry Potter movies, will be supporting the High Society Ball on Oct. 2. The Robert Ogden School, known as the world's largest school for autistic children will benefit from his selfless donations. An auction of rare items will be held to raise at least $85,000, which will be used to create new playgrounds at the school. Funds raised will be added to the $1,700,000 available by the joint efforts of the Yorkshire Post and the National Autistic Society. This money has been used to renovate the school. What was once a shabby building is now a safe and comfortable place where autistic children are attended to.
A scheduled guest to the event said, "The support from the Yorkshire Post has enabled the National Autistic Society to raise over £1m for the refurbishment work at the Robert Ogden School. This is a fantastic achievement, and the ball will be a brilliant opportunity to celebrate both this, and to help raise money still needed for areas like the playgrounds." Another supporter said, "Whether you attend on the evening itself, or simply make a donation you will be helping the charity make a difference to the lives of many children with autism."
A BBC TV reporter made an extremely informed comment. "Improving the playground areas at the Robert Ogden School will help teach the children to interact with each other outside and have fun." This is exactly what autistic children lack: social skills. Providing a place where they have the opportunity to communicate with each other will benefit all of them. My brother has autism, so I was thrilled to hear that celebrities were helping such an outstanding cause. Autism is, in short, a communication and developmental disorder. It affects every aspect of a person's life, including his or her ability to communicate with society. Speech is not the only factor that becomes a problem. Many autistic children and adults attend occupational therapy sessions to refine their motor skills. Those include buttoning a shirt, zipping a zipper, tying a shoe, balancing, etc.
As the autistic population continues to rise, with no known cause or cure, help is needed now more than ever. While scientists are researching autism, many parents grow baffled at the disorder's effects on their children. Symptoms include shortened attention spans, failure to respond to their names, and random hand movements and spasms. Food allergies are usually accompanied with unexplained disorder. Autism affects each person entirely differently. At the severe level, autism can cause frequent tantrums and seizures.
Seeing such a highly respected celebrity like Kenneth Branagh do something so noble proves that he still contributes to his community and understands that his help is much appreciated and needed. His down-to-earth actions are exemplary to anyone and everyone who can contribute their efforts. People like Branagh make improvements and progress in research possible. Let's give three cheers to our Harry Potter hero. Hip hip hooray!
Disclaimer: Veritaserum is run by fans and is for the fans. We are in no way official and are not affiliated with J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros., EA Games, Scholastic, or Bloomsbury. We do not own any of the characters in the books, movies, or games.
