The challenges that families of children with autism face are many and myriad.
Franco Pincilotti recalls his excitement when he learned his wife was expecting their child.
Giovanni has been his blessing, but remember when he was born…
„Something felt weird in my hands,” Franco said.
The boy was diagnosed with autism at the age of 4.
„He didn't say dad, his vocabulary was zero,” Franco explained. „He physically assaulted himself, physically assaulted himself, on the head, on the walls, biting himself, sometimes his hand was bleeding,” Franco recalled.
Since then, they have traveled a long road of progress and commitment.
„I taught Giovanni a system where when he hits himself, he rubs it, instead of hitting the arm, he rubs it,” explained Franco.
They learned that as a family they could solve challenges, for example, they took advantage of the fact that he liked chewing gum to make eye contact.
“One day I put the gum here, and as I was putting it like that, He looked at me and held the gum and we had that eye contact, and that's when I started crying,” Franco said.
Along the way they also discovered the impact of technology on their growth.
„Technology opened up the world to new things when so many things closed it down,” Franco said.
However, when you come to government schools.
„They always told us there were too few computers, no space, that was a problem,” said Jessica Pincilotti, Giovanni's mother.
That was the birth of his organization, „Autism: Yesterday and Today,” which seeks to raise funds to close that gap.
„The foundation's mission is to bring technology and information to schools for children with special conditions,” Jessica said.
They've already reached 9 schools in the Bay Area and are trying to share what they've learned about Giovanni through a book of the same name, even though he doesn't speak, he has a full-time job, makes his own food and has his own routines.
„We haven't won the war on autism, but we've won a lot of battles, I assure you,” Franco said.
They were given when Giovanni was young, after a grim diagnosis.
„Specifically, the doctor told us, Giovanni was going to be a useless person, he wasn't going to have any aspirations in life,” explained Franco.
They are currently living a successful life.
„I wouldn't change anything about the things that have happened in my life, my son is a blessing,” Jessica said.
With whom they learned what unconditional love is.
„He doesn't understand hate, racism, lies, my son is the purest thing you can have,” Jessica added.
And they will stand by him and continue to spread the message of strengthening them.
„Persistence, effort and patience,” Franco said.