This guest post is by Damian Orozco, a young man on the autism spectrum who was accepted into Loyola University. Damian is applying for the Spring 2021 Making a Difference Autism Scholarship via the nonprofit KFM Making a Difference started by me, Kerry Magro. I was nonverbal till 2.5 and diagnosed with autism at 4 and you can read more about my organization here.
I hope you can support my nonprofit like I’m trying to support these students with scholarship aid for college. Learn more on how you can help our cause with a small donation (just asking for $3 today, equal to your daily cup of coffee) here.
My grades reflect I have excelled in my classes, which in most cases I have. However, having Autism, ADHD, Anxiety and Depression, made achieving my grades, excelling in my classes, keeping up with my homework, and maintaining my grades challenging.
Today as I get ready to embark on my next chapter in life, I reflect on my life, and question why were, and are, my grades more important to me than anything else? Why did I focus on them more than being part of a sports team or a club, or even something that really did not involve school? I felt if I was a good student, my peers would not notice I have Autism, ADHD, suffer from anxiety and depression, or have sensory and learning disabilities. I did not know if it was worse sitting through a 45-minute English or Math class, just to understand the lesson, or to go home and complete the homework on my own. I spent my extra time after school with countless of my teachers, with tutors, to find ways to help me with my lessons.
My autism made me question why I struggled with my social skills and why I have problems establishing relationships. These questions became more prominent during my sophomore year as I began asking myself why I did not have many friends or why I was not in a relationship as many of my peers were. To make things more complicated, in the early years of my high school life, I discovered I was gay.
It didn’t make sense to me as I watched my peers who were in relationships talk about the dates they went on or going on, or when they talked about people they liked. I wondered why this was not happening to me, and it was so difficult for me to have similar experiences. I questioned if my autism was the reason or if I was simply afraid to take any steps to be in a relationship.
It was during this time, I encountered my first real crush and this was the first time I felt heartbreak, frustration, sadness and confusion all at the same time. For me, the lack of social skills, understanding social cues or establishing everyday relationships were other obstacles I had to overcome if I wanted to have a normal high school experience and fulfilling my goals in becoming a theoretical physicist.
I am about to become a college student. Many people believed I wouldn’t have reached this point in my life, and many continue to doubt my personal and academic success. However, I believe what brought me to this point, and what is going to keep me going, is my unwavering curiosity and my ambitious spirit. I define myself as a hard worker and someone who will do whatever it takes to complete my tasks, and I have learned to use the resources I have available to my advantage. I have learned to seek out help, I have learned I may need extra time to complete my homework, and I have learned my disabilities will not hold me back from achieving my goals.
Follow my journey on Facebook, my Facebook Fan Page, & Instagram!
My name is Kerry Magro, a professional speaker and best-selling author who is also on the autism spectrum that started the nonprofit KFM Making a Difference in 2011 to help students with autism receive scholarship aid to pursue a post-secondary education. Help support me so I can continue to help students with autism go to college by making a tax-deductible donation to our nonprofit here.
