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Quoting trentu.ca:
The Trent University Award for Youth Leadership recognizes individuals under the age of 25 who play a leading role in their community. Lewis Schofield educates youth and adults globally about Autism, Asperger’s Syndrome and Myasthenia Gravis, a rare and complex neuromuscular autoimmune disease for which there is no cure. Mr. Schofield raises money for Autism organizations in Canada and the United States while promoting awareness, tolerance and acceptance of difference through his artwork, writings and videos in the classroom, in the community and on the internet. Mr. Schofield is 14 years old and has Asperger Syndrome and Myasthenia Gravis. To accelerate the establishment of the student bursaries in honour of the Community Leaders Award winners, donors can take advantage of the Ontario Trust for Student Support Program (OTSS). Established by the Government of Ontario in 2005, OTSS matches endowed donations on a dollar-for-dollar basis to provide bursaries and awards to Ontario students. On October 26 2009, Trent University will host a gala event to pay tribute to the 2009 winners.
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Quoting a recent article about Lewis, also on trentu.ca:
[Lewis] raises money for autism organizations in Canada and the U.S. by selling his Art Cards online. He is also a junior moderator on FAM Family Autism Forum on Yahoo groups, providing parents with insight and understanding from a kid’s perspective on living with what he calls “an alphabet soup of diagnoses.” Lewis is also a “SouperIntendent” and regular contributor to Irked Magazine, where he has attracted readers globally since 2006 for his writings, interviews, information and currently a series of humourous videos, “Wisecrackin’ with Lewis Schofield.” “I guess I’m just not afraid to say what I’m thinking when it really matters to me,” he explains. In his interview with the International Best-Seller, Donna Williams, Lewis is asked about the “extras” that he has been diagnosed with. “I understand that you’re a kind of burger with the lot, that your AS includes added extras,” Williams asks. To this Lewis replies, “Boy oh boy–do I ever have extras and it’s ketchup for sure. I have Anxiety Disorder, Sensory Integration Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Learning Disabilities, Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities, Severe Allergies and Asthma. That’s a lot of things to have on a burger, don’t you think?” Lewis was diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis in 2008, a rare autoimmune disorder and neuro-muscular disease usually found in seniors that causes extreme fatigue and muscle weakness, slack jaw, semi-closed eye lids, face droop and trouble breathing. He created a video called, “Tell Me What Time It Is,” on You Tube describing his experience with the diagnosis and explaining the procedure of Intravenous Hemo Globulin (IVIG) treatment. The video includes text with facts about the disease, narrated with original music composed by Lewis. “He exhibits a startling and rare ability to take his pain and play with it, to communicate it to others and have them learn from it,” writes Sacha Vais, Managing Editor of Irked Magazine . . . Lewis describes how being the way he is makes him strive harder to get things right: “It makes me want to change things in the world so kids and babies feel safe almost all the time. It’s not enough to want to make things better for people. You have to really make things better…You don’t have to do something really big to make a difference. You just have to do something. Otherwise, nothing changes or gets better.”
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Learn more >>
Article in The Peterborough Examiner
News segment on CHEX Television
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