Madam Speaker, as the member mentioned, Jaden is a friend of hers. Our offices were on the same floor in the Valour Building for a little while. Jaden always loved to find her. I do not know if it is because she looked like Barney, as she said, but he really did have an affection for her, because she was nice to him, and loved to get his high five and a hug. He really looked forward to running down the hall when he knew that she was there.
The member talks about Jaden being an adult. Jaden is a smaller adult. He is about five feet six inches tall and weighs about 115 pounds. I think about a friend, Amanda Telford, whose son Philippe is, as she describes, about the size of an NHL defenceman. Things got so overwhelming for her family here in Ottawa that a few years back, she had to drop Philippe off at a social services office. The family could not handle him anymore in the home. They had nowhere else to go.
It is easy to get caught up in talking about children's issues, early intervention, and those kinds of things, and forget adults with autism and the challenges faced by families. I just want to thank the hon. member for taking the time to recognize those challenges.