SELF ADVOCATES
MEET MICHELLE UNRUH: Advocating for Bullying Awareness BY MICHELLE UNRUH
My name is Michelle. I am 34 years old and on the autism spectrum. I was bullied severely from the time I started school at 4 years old until I graduated from high school. It was a very sad time for me and my family. All this bullying happened to me because I was different. But I continued to stay positive and help others despite what I was going through. I won many citizenship awards and was always known for my smile and no-give-up attitude during school! When I graduated from high school I still didn’t feel like I quite fit in anywhere. I didn’t have many friends and didn’t know what my purpose was. But I always enjoyed following stories of people who inspired me. When Covid hit in 2020, a friend said to me that I should try coloring to stay busy. I thought no, I couldn’t. I struggled with fine motor skills problems since age 4. I couldn’t hold onto a pencil and went through lots of occupational therapy for that. Then I thought about it more and how I really needed to keep busy so I tried [coloring] a couple of small pictures and thought, “this isn’t too bad.” That’s when it hit me. I had found my purpose. I started an autism awareness page on Facebook and started coloring pictures for others who inspired me and to cheer others up. For quite a few years I had been following the story of Julianne Miszk. She was a successful para-athlete and a very kind giving lady even while fighting bone cancer in her jaw. She was a true inspiration to me. She never gave up even while struggling with a disability and cancer! I decided I wanted to color her a picture, so I reached out to her mom. She said yes, Julianne loves butterflies and fairies, and I colored her a butterfly picture. Julianne received it two days before she passed away! I sadly never got to meet her but the best thing that came out of what I did for her is that she gave me the gift of friendship with her family and friends! I now have an amazing group of friends that I never had. I continue to be a strong 36
November 2023
