Meet Ahmed

By Ahmed 

I live, work and raise my family in Seattle, which is on the other side of the country from Marcus Autism Center. However, I choose to support the center because its leading research efforts affect all children with autism. The research Marcus Autism Center does is especially important to me, because I have three children, ages 9, 10 and 12, who are on the autism spectrum.

My children have taught me a lot about myself. They have opened my eyes to my own capacity, my own level of patience. They have made me realize things about how I see the world. Learning more about how my children think has helped me become a better leader at Boeing. 

It’s also through my own, personal experimentation that I’ve learned what my kids are capable of and how to best support them. People might not expect this, but when my kids participate in competitive sports they progress in many ways. When they’re not active, they regress. I’ve learned even though it’s challenging, engaging children on the spectrum really makes a difference in how they can become more productive members of society. 

Marcus Autism Center does real-time research for kids with autism that leads to clinical practice.  They share their research with people across the country and throughout the world. This means kids with autism are getting the best possible help as early as possible. That’s meaningful to me as a parent of children with autism and as member of the global community.