I am a music therapist and special educator. I have been giving piano lessons for 5 years to a young autistic man for the past 5 years. He is 19 years old now. His sister was getting married several years ago and she asked him to choose a song to play while she walked down the aisle. It waa a religious Jewish wedding. We practiced and rehearsed for weeks playing it while I sat with him. When it came time to the wedding I was not able to sit with him under the Chuppah. He and I were both nervous but I instructed the band how to accompany him and I told him I would sit right near him as close as I could. He kept looking for me and I was nervous as I knew any changes to his routine could disrupt his need for sameness. The band followed him according to my directions and he played flawlessly. Not a dry eye in the hall (especially mine) and he achieved this great accomplishment which has carried over to other aspects of his life.

Terry Watson
Brooklyn, ny, NY