Living with autism: Student faces daily challenges

by Emily Barnes
5.25.10

Imagine juggling a schedule jam packed with Student Council meetings, NJROTC rifle team practices and competitions, various volunteering activities and afternoons filled with Science Club, all while still managing to be successful in school by making the honor roll each semester. Now imagine doing all this and more with autism. It would be a tough feat for anybody, but senior Bruce Peoples was diagnosed with autism before kindergarten and has handled it on a daily basis ever since.

“We didn’t think Bruce had autism,” Eliza Peoples, Bruce’s mother, said. “Bruce was a normal baby.”

At the age of 2, the Peoples family was in the process of moving from Texas to Washington because of military obligations when Bruce got an ear infection. The infection required medication, which Bruce continued to take even after the move.

While ear infections are typically easy to treat, Bruce’s had different effects on him and his symptoms following the infections concerned his family.

“He was a little chatterbox,” Eliza said. “He developed normally but when we got to Washington he just kind of shut down. He didn’t really talk to anybody. It seemed like he just kind of ignored us.”

The change in Bruce’s behavior was extremely significant, so his parents decided to get a professional opinion.

“We took him in for a hearing test and realized that his hearing had been affected by the ear infection, so we had tubes put into his ears,” Eliza said. “That helped with his hearing right away.

Then they put him into a developmental preschool to get his speech back, so they had him in speech therapy from the age of 3 to the age of 5.”

In order to remain in speech therapy after preschool, Bruce needed an educational diagnosis instead of just a medical diagnosis, so his parents turned to their pediatrician. After a battery of tests was run, they were told Bruce had autism.

“I guess we weren’t shocked, but we were a little surprised,” Eliza said. “We looked back and we saw that a few of the things that Bruce did, we could see a little bit of the autism traits.”

Autism has such a wide spectrum of degrees, and luckily, Bruce has always been high functioning.

“His autism is more of a cognitively delayed autism or having to describe or kind of explain (things) in more simplistic terms for him,” Eliza said. “Being that his siblings are younger, it made it a little bit easier because his cognitive ability is more on his younger brother’s level, so it made it just a little bit easier when he was growing up. Now, they’re doing different activities, so there’s a little bit of difficulty in explaining some of the things to Bruce.”

Now in his final year of high school, Bruce’s hard work and dedication to all of his organizations and schoolwork has not gone unnoticed by those around him.

“For me, labels are so hard because I don’t like to label kids, but at the same time, Bruce understands that he has autism but he works through those barriers every day,” special education department head Nathan Cain said. “He has an ability to create a future for himself.”
Bruce has made bettering the world around him through helping others a priority in his already busy life.

“I’ve done so many things that some people couldn’t do,” Bruce said. “I volunteer and it’s because these people, they deserve a second chance, and it’s hard to come by. I just hope that some of these people will appreciate the help that I’m doing.”

Not only did Bruce take advantage of many volunteering opportunities offered by Student Council and NJROTC, but he also organized a Pennies for Patients event at PL South almost single-handedly. The drive was sponsored by Student Council, but Bruce was responsible for most of the organizing and advertising for the fundraiser.

“Like Pennies for Patients, those kids and teens and adults who have lymphoma and leukemia, they deserve that second chance,” Bruce said. “It’s just that I wanted to support the kids, teens and adults, and it’s just great. I really want to do it.”

Bruce also keeps heavily involved in social and volunteering activities outside of school by participating in Leadership Connection For Teens, a group for kids with autism to socialize with teenagers without autism.

“We think it’s great to get the kids that have autism out there socializing with the kids that don’t have autism,” Eliza said. “Bruce is one of the very few kids with Autism who does not have problems socializing, but a lot of kids with autism have trouble socializing. But Bruce loves to be out there. He loves to do things.”

Staff members at PL South have been thoroughly impressed with the continued and dedicated involvement that Bruce has demonstrated.

“We want kids to be involved in so many things here at South and Bruce, I think, epitomizes that,” Cain said. “He’s such a huge advocate for our kids. I think he just is able to express himself in a way that is unique to people like Bruce.”

Bruce is very self-motivated, but the support he has received from his family members has played a substantial role in his successes. They have taken him to and from any event or meeting that he needed to be at and they have encouraged him to follow his instincts and become a part of anything he wanted to. The teachers, administrators, counselors and students of the Papillion-La Vista School District have also helped Bruce to feel comfortable and excel in anything he has set his mind to.

“I feel the great support,” Bruce said. “The support I’ve got, I just love it.”

There is one person in particular, school psychologist Carmon Haun, who Bruce remembers turning to for support over the years. Bruce said he valued her support because “she has helped me with problems that I’ve been having and when it’s stuck in my head.”

Bruce’s family has also been grateful for the assistance and support they have received within the district since his mid-semester transfer from the Bellevue School District during his last year of junior high.

“I cannot talk enough about all the support that he’s received from Papillion-La Vista School District,” Eliza said. “He went to Papillion Junior High and did great and the teachers there and the students there accepted him. They befriended him. All of the teachers have been very helpful for us. They’ve been in contact with us if they had any questions or concerns. They’ve always been very helpful with Bruce’s dad and I if we’ve had any concerns.”

Like Bruce, Eliza was able to think of a few key people who have been there for Bruce and the family during his high school years.

“Jackie Brown, wonderful,” Eliza said. “Absolutely wonderful. Kati Settles, just phenomenal. Ms. Haun. Just a few great people that we’ve been able to work with and were able to help us with Bruce in his years going through junior high and high school.”

Bruce has received immense amounts of encouragement and help, but he has also impacted the lives of those who have been lucky enough to meet him.

“What an amazing kid,” Cain said. “He does a great job with talking about his feelings and frustrations and he’s a good advocate for students he’s friends with to kind of break down barriers they may have in school. I think he does a great job with that. He’s inspired me to do a better job as a teacher for sure.”
His mother can agree that Bruce is not just an ordinary kid.

“He just loves being around people and he loves being involved with his friends and his classmates, just helping out,” Eliza said. “Whenever he sees any of the neighbors that need help, he will just go out and help them. He’s very selfless. He is just very helpful and kind and caring. He’s a great kid and I think it’s great.”

Over the years, Bruce has broken down barriers and stereotypes and exceeded expectations, not only for those with autism, but also for students who do not have autism. His achievements have not only been extremely impressive, but they have inspiring and have made so many people proud.

“I’m proud of the young man that he’s grown up to be, the kinds and caring and gentle young man that he is,” Eliza said. “I’m very proud that he has made it as far as he did in ROTC, that he has gone out there and has tried to do things, that he has not given up. Despite his disability, he has not said ‘I can’t do this,’ but has gone out there and done it. He’s a great kid.”

Next year, he will be a part of the Young Adult Transition Program, which is a program for recent graduates of both Papillion-La Vista High Schools that helps with the transition into life after high school- whatever that may be for each individual’s goals. He will be learning to drive this summer and is very excited to start this new chapter in his life, with dreams of transferring to a college soon and working on cars at some point in the near future.

Beyond all of his excitement, Bruce will also miss the friendships formed, goals achieved, organizations he participated in and the experiences he had.

“My best memory in high school was friendship,” Bruce said. “In high school I was alone in freshman year but in sophomore year, I had more friends than usual. It’s just the biggest memory I have. I just want them to remember me as a supportive Titan.”

And remember him they will. Bruce crossed the stage at the Omaha Civic Center on May 16 with more cheers from his classmates than any other graduating senior. Those weren’t ‘Boo’s’ that attendees were hearing. They were just chants of “BRUUUCE!”

Courtesy Photo