40 THE QUEENS COURIER • KIDS & EDUCATION • MARCH 29, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
kids & education
New federal law aims to further protect autistic children
BY WILLIAM HARRIS
editorial@qns.com / @QNS
Inspired in part by the tragic disappearance
of Long Island City student Avonte
Oquendo, a bill included in the new
omnibus federal spending package passed
on Th ursday provides life-saving technology
programs and grants for local law
enforcement and non-profi t organizations
in order to protect autistic children.
“Kevin & Avonte’s Law” is named aft er
the tragic deaths of Long Island City’s
Avonte Oquendo and Kevin Curtis of
Iowa. Oquendo, a non-verbal boy with
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) was
only 14 years old back in October of 2013,
when he left his LIC school unsupervised.
Aft er a three-month search, his body was
found on the Queens waterfront; he had
tragically drowned in the East River.
Th e bill, according to U.S. Senator
Charles Schumer, will help locate children
with autism and other disabilities
who wander away from adult supervision.
“Aft er Avonte Oquendo ran away from
his school and went missing, I learned
just how prevalent wandering is among
children with autism and other development
disorders. Since Avonte’s tragic
death I’ve pushed Congress to pass
Kevin & Avonte’s Law, a bill that will create
and fund a program to provide voluntary
GPS tracking devices to children
or adults with developmental disorders,
like Autism Spectrum Disorder,” said
Schumer.
Schumer has been working on the this
for several years before being added to the
federal spending bill signed last week. It
will attempt, to mirror the existing program,
the Missing Alzheimer’s Disease
Patient Alert Program, while also expanding
the current Missing Americans
Alert Program. While ensuring that the
Dedicated of Justice (DOJ) grants funds
for local law enforcement and non-profi t
organizations, new technology programs
will also be used to fi nd individuals who
wander away from supervision.
According to an American Academy of
Pediatrics Study, almost half of all children
with autism wander at least once.
Between the years 2011 and 2016, nearly
one third of the missing person cases
of those with autism have resulted in
death or in need of medical care according
to a study by the National Autism
Foundation.
Th e National Autism Association cites
that children and teens with autism tend
to run away because of a sensory overload,
avoiding a situation or even fi nding
something or someone they care about.
Th e Missing Americans Alert Program
will provide the awareness that communities
will need in order to prevent these
situations from happening in the future.
“Making voluntary tracking devices
available to vulnerable children with
autism or adults with Alzheimer’s who
are at risk of wandering will help out
countless families at ease,” said Schumer.
Th e Missing Americans Alert Program
will also be voluntary for parents, work
in conjunction with schools and provide
funding for community outreach.
Bayside Little League gears up for a brand-new season in Queens
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
As players from Major League Baseball’s
30 teams get ready to launch the 2018 season,
so do the sport’s future superstars in
Bayside.
Offi cially established in 1952, Bayside
Little League has taught thousands of
local kids America’s national pastime.
Th e league has teams in multiple divisions
open to boys and girls aged four to 17.
Bob Reid, the league’s commissioner,
has worked with the organization since
1986. First and foremost, he said, the
league off ers local kids the chance to play
the sport.
“We’re here to off er children a program
that gets them out in the fi eld and
in the parks to play baseball,” Reid said.
“It gets them to exercise, run around,
and keeps them physically fi t. And, at the
same time, they’re learning a sport that’s
extremely popular and is America’s favorite
pastime.”
Th e volunteer-based, community-driven
league has produced a number of noteworthy
players over the years, including
major league catcher Dave Valle, who
played with teams including the Seattle
Mariners and Texas Rangers in the 1980s
and 1990s. Outfi elder Mike Baxter, a former
Met who played with the team from
2011-13, also played with Bayside. Mets
fans know that Baxter’s spectacular catch
in left fi eld helped save the team’s fi rst
no-hitter, hurled by Johan Santana, on
June 1, 2012.
Most recently, Bayside Little League
alum Charlie Neuweiler, 19, became part
of the Kansas City Royals’ minor league
system. He was a fi ft h-round pick in last
year’s MLB Draft .
“Th ere have been many more players
who have made college teams, minor
leagues and the majors,” Reid said.
Aside from learning to play the sport,
players learn how to be part of a team,
cooperate with others toward a common
goal and how to lead.
“Th e league is teaching them how to
get along with others and how to have
each other’s backs. Th at rolls over into
every day life,” Reid said. “It also teaches
them how to be leaders, call plays and
take charge.”
Th e little league organization also fosters
lasting friendships.
“Th e friendships are lifelong and the
memories are some they’ll never forget,”
he said.
Spring 2018 registration is now open
into the fi rst week of April. Interested
players can sign up on the league’s website,
www.baysidelittleleague.com.
“Our motto is, ‘We turn no child away,’”
Reid noted. “We really mean that.”
As always, the organization will offi -
cially kick off their new season with the
Bayside Little League Parade on April
14. Th e annual parade will run along Bell
Boulevard and end at Crocheron Park.
File photo/THE COURIER
QNS fi le photo
Bayside Rebels compete in the championship game of the 2015 Borough Cup Challenge at Yankee Stadium
link
link
/www.baysidelittleleague.com
