Elpida 2018 ‘Action’ Speech

Written by James Koutrakos

Event: Elpida 2018 - Parkview Manor

Date: November 30th 2018

Each year, I’ve had the opportunity to go up and speak to my experiences with autism from a sibling perspective. My favourite speech of mine was from Elpida 2018. I spoke to the theme of ‘Action’, in the context of acting on something that you have been thinking about, something you want to do, turning it into something tangible. Please, enjoy!

Transcript

INTRODUCTION

If you remember my speech from last year, I spoke about a very powerful 10-letter word that transcends autism and can turn your whole world around, that word is acceptance. I sang its praises, explained why it’s great, and it still is. But, what if I told you that there is another word. A word that is not only shorter, but packs way more of a punch. A 6-letter word that puts other words into motion, brings ideas from dreams to realities, and comes after awareness and acceptance. That word is Action. 

Good evening everybody and welcome to the 2018 Elpida Gala, The Blue Event. My name is James Koutrakos and tonight I would like to speak to you about action. Before getting into anything I just wanted to reiterate that this is our 5th annual gala, and we sold out a venue this big, how insane is that?! This of course wouldn’t be possible without the continuous support of our veteran attendees and those new to Elpida here tonight. 

The Blue Event’s name came about from wanting to give this year’s gala a different theme, and also to pay homage to our original logo, the colour of autism, and our inspiration Matthew’s, favourite colour. 

BODY

I stress this point every year and I just want to make sure it's clear that Autism is different in every single human being and with that this means that there are different challenges in each individual. Meaning that no two people with autism have the same challenges of autism. My starting point in learning about autism came from my brother, Matthew. He’s somewhere on the spectrum where he’s not necessarily high-functioning, but he can construct sentences, understand right from wrong, and expresses his happiness and frustration clearly about 80% of the time. On the other side, he does have trouble understanding social cues or sarcasm, has heightened anxiety for loud noises out of nowhere, and his eating habits are… well you’ve heard of a no-carb diet, yeah Matthew is on an ALL-CARB diet (breadsticks, brownies, chicken fingers, etc). 

Now I know, that it is funny at first. But let’s think about that. My brother is so set in his eating habits that I personally fear for his health. His inability to handle loud abrupt noises, or sudden changes in his schedule may cause him to lash out, and what happens when my parents and I aren’t around to defend him and explain to others why he’s doing it? Some people will think he’s crazy, take advantage of him. I way too often think to myself “what in the world can I do to help him?” I breathe easier knowing that we have such a great family support team, but as much as we talk about him, Elpida is not about Matthew. What about the families going through the same thing that don’t have the same support? What are they going to do, who can they get to help them out?

We, as humans, care to listen and learn about something when it affects us or someone close to us. Many of you here tonight are friends and family of myself or someone else on the committee, some of you have cousins or siblings with autism, and some of you have children with autism. The common factor between all of us here tonight is that we see a light at the end of this pitch black tunnel. A place, a centre, a respite home where adults with autism can live, learn, and love life with the proper support from educated, caring workers who can adjust their approach to each and every individual with autism needs. Let me tell you that we are not as far as we think we are from our goal, but we still need a lot of help to get there. 

CONCLUSION

I’ll conclude with this: Action. An action is a thing that is done. The fact or process of actually doing something, and not just saying that you’ll do it. By looking around this room tonight I can tell that all 700 plus of you have a goal to achieve, something you are planning to act on. Whether it’s closing that deal, getting that job promotion, scoring a 90% on that exam, or donating for people with autism to have a better future, we all have something we plan to do sometime soon. Well I’m here to tell you stop thinking about it and just do it. Act on the butterflies in your stomach and execute the plan, help each other succeed, and don’t wait and wait because time won’t wait for you. Can I let you in on a little secret? You have all already exhibited the word “action” tonight, by being here on your Friday evening, supporting a cause like this, so that people like your cousin with autism, your child with autism, and my brother can have as great of a future as humanly possible. 

Without your generous support, attendance, donations, volunteering, and willingness to learn about autism, the Elpida Autism Foundation wouldn’t be five years in to our events with approximately $400,000 raised towards autism. We have the potential to grow further in our development as a charity and get to our goal as soon as possible so as many families who need our help can get it. You are all amazing, incredible individuals and I know what you all came here to do tonight, so act on it.