Piecing it together
Monday, March 27, 2006 (09:51:42)

Posted by sylvia

Orlando Sentinel

By April Hunt

Relaxation comes in five-minute bursts in the Schiller household.

That's about how long a Barney video or tape of Jeopardy! captures the attention of Aaron and Ben, 13-year-old twins whose autism hinders their social and communication skills.

Happy but with limited awareness of the world around them, the twins are usually in constant motion, fiddling with puzzles, shoving each other like typical brothers and finding things to get into and messes to make. Beth Schiller has had to replace every window in the house with shatterproof glass because of the boys' exuberant play.

"It's a very guilty feeling, wanting a break," Schiller said of relishing those moments. "You feel like you should be able to handle it."

The Altamonte Springs mother did handle it, for years. She was awake at 5:30 every morning so she could shower before rousing the twins and her other son, Sloan, and didn't get to sleep until midnight.

As a single parent, she juggled the children, her teaching job, doctors appointments, therapy visits and keeping up the home. But it was becoming harder and harder to keep it all going with short "sanity breaks" as the only reprieve, Schiller said.

Enter Camp Thunderbird. Quest Inc., one of the charities that benefits from the Orlando Sentinel Family Fund Holiday Campaign, runs the Apopka camp.

One of just three camps accredited for working with the disabled in the area, Camp Thunderbird gives families of the developmentally disabled a much-needed rest. And for its 420 clients every summer, it provides close supervision for them to enjoy usual camp activities such as arts, games and time with nature.

"We make it as best we can, individually, for each child to have a vacation in a safe environment," Camp Director Shirley O'Brien said.

Nearly everyone who applies is accepted, and many families, such as the Schillers, qualify for scholarships. That has cost the camp -- it ran $250,000 in the red last year -- but gives families a respite like they've never had before.

Schiller wasn't sure she trusted it. The twins had never been away from her before. Because of that, she and Sloan, 16, had also never taken a vacation.

O'Brien reassured her that the entire staff was trained to work with children like Aaron and Ben. They would get one-on-one attention, which would allow them to explore things on their own for the first time in their lives.

Schiller finally agreed to the six-day stay. She called O'Brien's cell phone several times a day to check in, but staff reassured her that things were fine.

On the third day, Schiller took Sloan to Daytona Beach. The overnight stay was their first vacation, but Schiller was still anxious about the twins.

When she went to pick them up, her fear melted. Neither boy wanted to leave. Ben, who like his brother has a limited vocabulary, got his message across by hiding from his mother behind a tree.

"We were in tears watching that, because it was so wonderful to see him expressing himself in such a dramatic way," Camp Coordinator Rosa Figueroa.

In case that message wasn't clear, Aaron and Ben both learned a new word. But Schiller and Sloan made sure they only talked about "camp!" -- always said as an exclamation -- just before the twins attended camp again last summer.

Otherwise, it would have been nearly impossible to explain that it wasn't time yet.

When it was time, Ben was able to enjoy camp in a small group, rather than requiring a staffer just for him. Aaron and he stayed for the longest session possible: 12 days.

And Schiller and Sloan decided to venture farther from home. They flew to visit family in Arizona.

In five days, they packed in trips to Sedona, Tucson, the Petrified Forest, the Grand Canyon and the Painted Desert. They talked about the twins, but both were excited to have something new in common.

"It gives all my kids an opportunity to be like other kids," Schiller said. "Sometimes it's hard for Sloan and I to have a conversation. We made up for lost time."

Everyone returned home recharged. The boys have made improvements this year in school. Sloan got his first dog, Midnight, who gives kisses on command to Aaron.

Months later, things can still get chaotic. The boys have hit growth spurts and seem to have renewed energy.

So some of the boys' Hanukkah gifts this year will be clothes, and of course, Barney videos and toys that make sounds. The twins are still quieted, briefly, by such games.

"It's good to have a chance to remember they are good kids with autistic behavior," Schiller said. "It sounds weird to say it, but it's really nice to be here when it's quiet."