'I'm going to help': Mom moves south to support student son with autism

A young man from Moose Cree First Nation is getting ready for college in Barrie, but his family has started a GoFundMe campaign because he can't make the move on his own.

Milan Hookimaw has high-functioning autism and had been dreaming of attending college since he was a child. He recently got accepted into the community integration through co-operative education program at Georgian College, but it wasn't an instant victory.

His mother, Leona Chilton, says there are long wait-lists for people on the autism spectrum to access support services. So, she decided to leave her job and move south to support him.

"He does need the day-to-day support, a lot of prompting, explaining about the directions or the ways of the world just to kind of translate the world around him," Chilton says. "It's not even a question. I'm going to help my son."

Mother launches campaign to support family

The Chiltons are a two-plus income household to keep up with the high cost of living in Moose Factory.

Both Chilton and her husband Eli work, and their children contribute to the family through part-time jobs, but the family lives paycheque to paycheque.

Chilton says she made the difficult decision to "swallow my pride" and launch a GoFundMe campaign, seeking help toward the costs of moving her son down to Barrie.

She says she continues to debate whether the fundraiser was a good choice, especially with so much need in the world, including from the tornado that recently damaged a portion of Barrie, their soon-to-be home.

"I'm just the lady reaching out. Nobody has to reach back, but if they do, my gratitude cannot be measured," she says. "All I can ask for is people's goodwill and their faith in us that it will make this next part in our lives as successful as possible."

Leaving work behind in the middle of a year meansthe loss of Chilton's salary come September, but it also led to her employer recalculating her leave benefits she had previously used for a difficult month this spring.

"They grant leavecredits based on the year, the fiscal year, and because of our decision to leave in September I didn't have enough and now I owe that time and wage back," Chilton says.

That has meant her paycheque will be nearly cut in half until her departure. Her husband and their oldest child will stay working in Moose Factory to try to make ends meet.

Fortunately, Hookimaw and a sibling have each secured funding from their First Nation to cover their education costs for at least the first semester, but they're not the only family members off to school.

Mother, son enrol together

Chilton does not have a college diploma and was concerned about finding any job in Barrie, let alone one that would allow her the flexibility to take time to help her son when he needs support.

"We decided, well, I'm going to go to school, too. That way I can be at the college as well and readily available for him for whatever he may need. And, because he doesn't need constant supervision, there's going to be that freedom for me to do that," Chilton says.

She's enrolled in the two-year Indigenous community and social development program at the college.

Chilton has begun to connect with supportive services such as the Barrie Native Friendship Centre and mental health services to ensure she and her son have people to reach out to if they start to feel overwhelmed.

Long wait times for autism support in Ontario

Chilton says all of this mobilizing might have been avoided if there were more support services available for people on the autism spectrum over the age of 18, as well as their families.

"Once they turn 18 years of age, it's just a dive off of a cliff. And kids don't stop having autism after they're18, so I think the province and the federal government, everybody, they should really work to increase services and programs," Chilton says.

"We need help. The lines are ridiculous and shouldn't exist in a country as great as Canada."

The Ontario Ministry of Children, Family and Social Services says youth with developmental disabilities turning 18 can access funding support through its passport program, whichprovides between $5,000 and $40,250to eligible applicants.

A ministry spokesperson also suggested the Ontario Disability Support Program and working with a nearby Developmental Services Ontario office to help access required supports.