Travis’s marathon year
Tomorrow an Adelaide father and school teacher will run his 12th marathon in 12 months.
Travis Saunders is the founder of Run4Autism, a charity that started in January when he took to running as a way of relieving the pressures of bringing up his own autistic son, Patrick.
Travis already knew about the challenges of autistic children – he taught children with special needs.
“Our family home was turned into a therapy centre and we devoted every minute of the day to helping our son learn to communicate and make sense of the world around him,” he said.
“My partner and I found part-time jobs to enable us to develop a relationship with our son, keep him calm and help him learn.
“Our little boy made little to no eye contact, didn’t talk, and it broke our heart to see him so often overwhelmed by what was happening around him.
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“We turned to Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Relationship Development Intervention, bio- medical approaches, Hanan- More than Words, and Verbal Behaviour/ABA.”
It was at this stage that Travis reached a turning point.
“Exhausted and unfit, I struggled to make it through the day. I decided to turn to running as a form of meditation and stress relief.
“Within months I was running further and training harder.
“I would run when it was dark and do 1:1 therapy with my son during the day.”
Parents of autistic children know all too well that its more than the effort that takes its toll – it’s the money.
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“Therapy is not cheap,” Travis says.
“The federal government recommends 20 hours per week but effectively funds for one.
“Some forms of therapy cost in excess of $50,000 per year. This is why I am fundraising to support other families and the autism organisations that support them.”
And that’s where Run4Autism started.
To kick off the fundraising group, Travis set a challenge – to run 12 marathons in 12 months; and tomorrow the finish line looms.
So far, he’s raised $85,000 for Autism SA, the not for profit organisation that provides support for parents, families and children living in South Australia.
His partner, former ABC broadcaster Fiona Churchman, paid tribute to Travis’s efforts.
“This weekend is a huge one for my little family,” she said.
“On Saturday Travis will run the 64 kilometre Bruny Island Ultra marathon in Tasmania; his 12th marathon in 12 months as he raises awareness of autism across Australia.
“He’s almost done what he said he would do, along the way making five of the marathons ultra events and even running for 24 hours in Adelaide in July. Yep. Incredible.
“I’m extremely proud of his achievements and how he’s inspired so many people to take on a challenge.”
* Follow Travis’s last run https://www.facebook.com/Run4Autism
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