Kurt has many people pulling for him: his tireless mom, his great friends, his committed teachers—and, of course, you, the supporters who have helped change his life.

Kurt has a crew. Since the eighth grade, he and his pals have hung out together. They’re tight. They’re boys.

Kurt has autism, and though this can create enormous challenges, his friends are always there for him. Their bond from middle school has carried forward to today, where Kurt is now 17 and they’re seniors. This is a precious arrangement and Kurt’s mom, Toni, is aware that this sort of social connection can be rare in the tumultuous environment of public school.

“He has an incredible group of friends,” she says. “They really took him under their wing. It’s amazing to watch them together and to see Kurt engaged, playing soccer, joining in homecoming events, really being a part of it all.”

But life wasn’t always this idyllic. For most of Kurt’s life, Toni was operating in a vacuum of the unknown. At the age of four, Kurt was given a non-autism diagnosis, due to cognitive delays. But Toni was skeptical and never thought it was the accurate diagnosis.

“I never once agreed,” she said. “So I just pushed. I knew he needed more support. I knew something wasn’t right.”

She continued to push, while educating herself about autism and working closely with the pediatricians; “I fought to the end,” she recounts. 

“It’s amazing to watch them together and to see Kurt engaged, playing soccer, joining in homecoming events, really being a part of it all.”

Eventually, Kurt received an autism diagnosis: in 2020. This proved to be a relief, but also challenging in its own right. 

There was so much to learn, so many resources to seek out, and, unfortunately, Berlin and the North Country do not have nearly the options that other, more populous and wealthier New Hampshire communities enjoy.

“I had pretty good people in my corner,” she says. “But at the same time, there were periods when the school didn’t know how to deal with him, and Kurt would just be sent home. I was getting phone call after phone call.”

This past year, Kurt has found his groove with the Mountie Mart Cafe, the innovative vocational training program operated out of Berlin High School and funded by CMF Kids and Crotched Mountain Foundation. There, at the Cafe, Kurt is able to receive hands-on training in the food retail business, working alongside staff and peers and putting his new-found knowhow to good use at events like the local farmers market.

“He really enjoys it,” Toni says, “I think it’s a great program. The students are engaged and are learning the life skills that will help them in the real world.”

When Kurt is “off the clock,” and enjoying the memories that high school can provide, he can be seen with his friends, perhaps playing JV soccer or unified basketball. 

Or maybe, just maybe, Toni will again receive the phone call she took a couple of years ago, when Kurt, on the other line, exclaimed: “My friends voted for me! My friends voted for me.”

Baffled, Toni turned to her daughter for explanation, who instantly knew what Kurt was talking about: Kurt had been voted on the Homecoming Court. That year he wore the sash, rode on the float, waved to the crowd – all of it.

“He’s shooting for it again this year,” Toni says.

And why not? If anything, Kurt has proved he can accomplish anything – especially with his friends, his teachers, and, most importantly, his mom in his court.