Maurice Snell inspires Joe Mantegna, and vice-versa
by Maurice
Friday, June 13 turned out to be a lucky day for Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago. Emmy and Tony Award winner Joe Mantegna returned to his native Chicago to share his perspective of Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago’s New Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research. He took a visit inside the nearly completed autism program and adored everything that was in the school.
At first, Joe told his own story about his family life, which includes his older daughter Mia, who is autistic. He explained the trials and tribulations he and his family suffered during the early part of Mia’s life. The road was rocky, but Joe and his family have stayed together and are optimistic about his daughter’s life.
He went on to express his involvement with the Easter Seals organization. The most interesting part of the conversation was me asking the question of what inspired Joe to represent Easter Seals. His response: yours truly.
At first, I couldn’t believe it. But I knew he was saying it from the heart. If I were to thank Joe in person, I would tell him, “Thank you for your words of inspiration to the Easter Seals family. I see you not only as a spokesperson, but also a philanthropist and humanitarian for people with autism, including me. Whenever you come back into town, I would love to meet Mia.”
There are many individuals with autism who have a chance to do other things, like become a nuclear technician, graduate with a PhD from Harvard, whatever it is, you name it. I was fortunate enough to graduate from college and get offered a job at Easter Seals. And now, I’ve inspired Joe Mantegna!