A Scout's honour
At 16, Edward King -- once a violent, at times suicidal, 11-year-old (5 years ago) -- has become a person others can admire, as Shelley Page explains
The last time a story about Edward King appeared in this newspaper, he had just been suspended from elementary school -- the third time in three weeks -- for aggressive, unruly behaviour. That was five years ago, and the then-11-year-old with pervasive development disorder, a form of autism, was acting out because he'd lost the help of a full-time educational assistant. He was depressed and talked of suicide.
Edward King, 16, has won with the Award of Fortitude, one of Scouts Canada's highest national awards. That's quite an achievement for an autistic boy who, just five years ago, had been suspended from school three times in three weeks.
Gump, an unlikely American hero, possessed many autistic qualities, yet received the medal after saving members of his platoon in the Vietnam War.
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28 Jan 2008, 1:19 am
