Conference creates welcoming space where autism community connects with wide range of resources

The Autism Alliance of Michigan hosts the 2025 Navigating Autism Today (NAT) Conference in Grand Rapids on Friday, November 14. Starting with registration and breakfast at 8 a.m., the event creates a safe and welcoming space at the Unified Sports & Inclusion Center for autistic adults, children, and families as well as a platform for professionals and providers serving the autistic community to share resources and network around best practices. 

“It brings together parents, children, families, and the autistic adults, who all have a really wide range of capabilities and skills,” says Dr. Barbara Yakes, parent of an adult autistic child. “They can see the supports that are offered to make things more understandable and accessible, and help them meet the challenges, because there are a lot of challenges, things that will help their future — all in one low-cost, non-threatening, very supportive, and conveniently accessible place.”

At past NAT conferences, Yakes has gleaned useful information about current programs, research, and therapies. She and her son especially enjoy speaking with AAoM staff members in person and with vendors sharing resources and services. 

“Everybody there is advocating for a better future for autistic individuals,” Yakes says. “You can casually talk to people and find out what may be helpful in whatever phase of life. It’s all in one place in one day, it’s convenient, and it doesn’t cost much.”

Serving the autism community despite setbacks

Because of the huge impact that NAT conferences have made in both Grand Rapids and Metro Detroit, AAoM decided to keep the two events on the calendar despite a $2 million state funding cut. For the past ten years, AAoM has relied on that funding to support its MiNavigator program. To continue serving Michigan’s autism community, AAoM has had to make the difficult decision to lay off multiple staff members and reconsider how it can continue to provide its essential services. 

“Despite this tremendous setback, our goal remains to serve the community with that same professionalism and level of care that we’ve been known for since 2009,” says Lauren Todaro AAoM development director. “That includes continuing MiNavigator.”

As the team reimagines what AAoM is going to look like in the coming year, the goal is to be leaner, more sustainable, and focused on stability. By pursuing more secure, private funding sources to help close that $2 million gap, the plan is to reduce vulnerability to any unanticipated  changes that could impact funding in the future.

“The Navigating Autism Today conference is truly at the heart of our mission,” Todaro says. “It brings together parents, caregivers, professionals, and self-advocates from across the state for an entire day of connection and learning. Attendees leave feeling empowered, informed, and — true to our mission— better equipped to navigate their own unique autism journey.”

Keynotes, breakout sessions, vendors, and more

In addition to breakout sessions covering everything from learning strategies and finances to wellness and independence, keynote speakers Dr. Steven Pastyrnak and Larry Andrus will present, “ASD: An unexpected journey. Unravelling the mystery of current diagnostic and treatment trends.” Andrus is the parent of an adult  autistic son and board president of Autism Support of Kent County. Pastyrnak is  a clinical psychologist who works with autistic children at Corewell Health Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital. 

“Where were we 30 years ago? Where are we today?” Pastyrnak asks. “What we have found over the years is that our ability and our ideas around assessing autism have evolved and changed so much that it really has been helpful to have multiple providers, multiple specialists involved in that evaluation process.”

Andrus lived through those 30 years of changes. 

​​”For our son, Joshua, our third son, in 1992 we had to force an evaluation. There was just no help, nothing like we have today,” he says. “After their evaluation of Josh, they basically told us to find a safe place in the corner of the room and hope for the best. No recommendations. It was  the worst day of our lives.”

Andrus’ reaction was, “Hell no, we’re going to make him reach his ceiling.” And they did. An accomplished artist, Josh won the Artprize Legacy Trust Collection award in both 2013 and 2016. His current schedule includes movement classes, art classes, therapeutic horseback riding, daily outings with his aide, and regular attendance at Benjamin’s Hope. 

“I’m going to talk about how we do what we do. There are lots of opportunities,” Andrus says.”Be your child’s advocate. Don’t be shy about it, but do it professionally.”

Pastyrnak and Andrus will then discuss the grief process families experience when they first get that autism diagnosis and how to move from grief to mobilization by accessing resources and finding supports for everybody in the family.

“There’s a lot of anxiety, a lot of fear — sometimes it’s hard to move forward. ‘This is not the expectation that we had when we brought this beautiful child home from the hospital,’” Pastyrnak says. “We’re going to normalize that for the families there.”

Pastyrnak will also touch on current trends in diagnosis and treatment. One diagnostic trend is better identification of autism in girls. Pastyrnak notes that high functioning autistic girls have been missed for years and years.

“These types of gatherings allow people to connect with the clinical community. It becomes a place to learn, a place for guidance, a place for support,” Pastyrnak says. “When you’re able to hear and get together with people who have knowledge and experience with autism and be in a very supportive environment, it’s a huge, huge value for the community.”

Emergency fundraising campaign

Beyond the NAT Conference, AAoM’s work in building awareness, acceptance, and support of Michigan’s autism community benefits all Michiganders. AAoM has launched an emergency fundraising campaign in response to the state budget cut. The goal is to secure $500,000 over the next few months through foundation support and individual donors. Donations can be made at AAoMI.org/crisis.

“Every contribution, whether it’s $5 or $5,000, directly helps keep our MiNavigator program running and ensures that we can keep serving families across Michigan.

For NAT Conference information and registration, visit the AAoM website.

Photos courtesy the Autism Alliance of Michigan.
Dr. Pastyrnak and Larry Andrus photos courtesy subjects.

The Autism Alliance of Michigan Navigating Autism Today (NAT) Conference connects autistic people of all ages and their loved ones with education, resources, and community.