Community Gathers To Support Family

The Glenpool community held a special event on Sunday for a very special child. Four-year-old Julius Allensworth suffers from autism. His mother says he has made incredible strides, but the family is

Sunday, November 18th 2007, 6:13 pm

By: News On 6

The Glenpool community held a special event on Sunday for a very special child. Four-year-old Julius Allensworth suffers from autism. His mother says he has made incredible strides, but the family is overwhelmed by medical bills. The News On 6â€™s Chris Wright reports, in addition to autism, Julius also has a severe digestive tract illness that requires chemotherapy.

His family often travels to see specialists in Texas because the treatment is out of state, insurance often does not always cover the bills. To offset some of those costs, Grin and Barret Productions, Artist Co-Op, and Faith Church organized a fundraiser.

The event was carnival-themed. Donations earned people tickets which could then be used for food or for some time in the jumping castle.

Julius's mother says seeing her child playing with other children was incredibly rewarding.

"We feel very blessed that everyone has pulled together to do this for Julius. It's really hard to find the words to explain how we feel as a family. The support we received is amazing,â€ said Darlene Allensworth, Juliusâ€™ mother.

Julius was diagnosed with autism when he was two years old.

Since his family began taking him to Texas, they say his vocabulary has improved from several words to several hundred.

Watch the video: Neighbors Help Family With Sick Child