Each year, tens of thousands of children diagnosed with autism, from mild to severe, enter adulthood and leave the safe confines of schools and their services behind.
Every day, their parents, such as Jennifer Smith-Currier of Gardner, Kan., worry what will become of them.
"It's like, where is the journey going?" said Smith-Currier, whose children Corinne, 16, and Cameron, 14, have autism. "When you have a typical child, there are goals: You go to high school; you go to college; you have a career and 2.5 children. My daughter is 16 with the mental capacity of a 12-year-old. Will my son ever get married? I don't know the answer. Will my daughter ever drive a car? I don't know the answer. Will she ever find love?
Smith-Currier joined about 65 other parents, counselors, developmental experts and many adults with autism recently to be part of a "National Town Hall" - meetings held simultaneously in 16 cities.
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