Military life can be both stabilizing and deeply challenging for families raising a child with autism. While the structure and predictability of service routines can offer comfort, frequent relocations, deployments, and changing support systems can disrupt the consistency many children with autism rely on to feel safe and regulated. For parents, it becomes a constant balancing act between meeting the demands of military service and advocating for their child’s developmental, educational, and emotional needs.
It is a journey retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Jaime B. Parent and his wife, Elizabeth “Tracy” Parent, navigated firsthand, and their new book shows other families how to do the same.
“We got a lot of help when Bryan was first diagnosed in 1988,” recalled Jaime Parent. “So much so that my wife, Tracy, changed careers and became a special educator to pay it forward after learning from the compassionate professionals who worked with our son. We made a pact that when it was our turn to help other families, we would remember how we struggled and dedicate ourselves to supporting young families the way we were supported a long time ago.”