Garrett and his wife are the parents of a now 10 year old with autism. Collin was diagnosed at 18 months and when he was diagnosed, we dove straight into every therapy possible. As you probably hear alot, we blew through our savings, and drove our credit card bills higher than I thought they would ever be allowed to go to pay for his therapy. We realized that although we had and still have a mountain of debt that we were lucky because my wife was being trained by the therapists and was putting in extra hours to help Collin. We also were seeing way to many families who were not doing anything for their kids because they did not have the resources we had.
So in 2007 we decided to try and help. We teamed up with 4 PhD BCBA's and in 2008 introduced our video based ABA training program. The basic idea of the system is to allow parents and schools to understand the concepts of ABA. So many families around the world do not have resources near them or do not have the funds to pay for them. This platform enables a family to learn best practices and utilize them in any environment. Because it is video based the end users can review the training as often as they need to get the most out of the material. They can also share it with other family members and community members so that they maintain a consistency for the child
Collin Butch - For whom Maximum Potential Group was founded. Collin is 9 years old. He is a lovable, funny, smart, boy with autism. He attended a typical kindergarten, 1st and second grade with an adult facilitator and now is in an amazing self contained class where he is working on grade level curriculum at his own pace. He loves music, counting, the alphabet and wants to be in the Scrips National Spelling Bee. He is on a 7th grade reading level and enjoys trying new things like rock climbing, canoeing and hiking. His favorite foods are burgers and french fries and he warms the hearts of all our friends and families.
My husband Garrett and I were married over 12 years ago in Atlanta, Georgia. In September of 2001 we found out we were having a baby, Collin Raymond Butch, who was born in May of 2002. We were a happy family of three and we filled the role of excited new parents well. I quit my job to stay home with Collin and be there for him daily. At fifteen months some things started to alert Garrett that Collin was not developing typically. I insisted that he was fine, and so did our doctor. I was happy to listen to anyone who would tell us that nothing seemed to be wrong. Garrett was not convinced and after persistent effort and research, he broached the subject of autism.
Honestly, my initial reaction was to completely shut down and block out what he was telling me. I knew nothing about autism, but I knew I did not want it in our family. I fought back tears and pushed the thought out of my mind as much as I could. As time went on, all of our friend's children who were the same age as Collin proceeded to hit milestones that Collin did not. Finally, I listened to my husband and we began to seek help.
We learned more about autism and became parent experts very quickly. We researched and researched and soon became a "Babies Can't Wait” family. By twenty months, Collin was diagnosed and began hours of intense therapy which included a hectic schedule of speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, hippo therapy, music therapy and Applied Behavior Analysis therapy (ABA). We began to see results quickly and continued to see improvements in Collin each year. We are still true to our therapy schedule and Collin is on the GFCF diet. Collin is rising above this disorder's grip and we are proud to say that he has worked very hard to decrease his autistic behaviors and he is developing more typical behavior now than ever before. We believe that each of the therapies we tried has added to Collin's success, but we understand that our persistent efforts at home have been the difference maker in his progress.
As parents of an autistic child, we can sympathize with the emotional, physical and financial burden that autism brings to a family. We celebrate our son's progress and thank those who have helped us so much. With bittersweet emotions we are co-founders of Maximum Potential Group. Maximum Potential is an effective and affordable solution to overcoming autism. Our goal is to help parents like us achieve success with their children, and continue to learn the incredible lessons that life teaches. This cost effective program will bring ABA into the homes and schools of thousands of autistic families. Those who use the program include but will not be limited to parents, grandparents, siblings, teachers, paraprofessionals, bus drivers, professionals and caregivers. We are so happy to be able to give something so desperately needed to such a deserving community. Thank you for your interest in our story, our company and our cause.
http://www.maximumpotentialkids.com/whatwedo.htm
http://www.maximumpotentialkids.com/abacourse-6.htm
Monday, May 13, 2013 at 10:22AM