St. Louis Cardinals help Thompson Foundation hit a home run to raise $560,000 for autism work

By Adrienne Cornwall and Abigail Dempsey

ST. LOUIS (May 5, 2015) — As honorary chairs of the annual It’s In the Cards auction and dinner, St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Matt Carpenter and his wife, Mackenzie, brought a deep bench to the Renaissance St. Louis Grand Hotel on Thursday evening.

Accompanied by about a dozen Cardinals players and General Manager John Mozeliak, the Carpenters helped the Thompson Foundation for Autism raise $560,000 to support the work of the Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders at the University of Missouri.

“Funds from Thursday’s event will support the medical services, education efforts and cutting-edge research we do at the Thompson Center,” said Dr. Stephen Kanne, executive director of the center. “Every year, this event helps us continue to reach more and more families touched by autism in Missouri.”

In addition to the Cardinals, who obliged fans by autographing baseballs coming off Thursday’s 9-3 home win against the Philadelphia Phillies, Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon stopped by to congratulate founders Bill and Nancy Thompson on the center’s many successes in its 10 years of existence.

With Nixon’s signature in 2010, Missouri was among a wave of states that passed legislation requiring insurers to cover services for Applied Behavior Analysis, one of the most effective – and expensive – treatments for children with autism that was often denied by insurers.

Now in its ninth year, the annual auction featured top prizes such as a weeklong stay in Paris, the opportunity to throw out the first pitch at a Cardinals home game, and a special last-minute donation of an autographed Augusta flag and hat from USGA golfer and the 2015 Master’s Tournament champion Jordan Spieth, whose sister has autism.

“We have a very special auction item this evening,” said KMOX radio host Debbie Monterrey, master of ceremonies for the evening. “From Jordan Spieth, he says, ‘Thank you for the work you do at the Thompson Center. I feel privileged to help by signing the Augusta flag and hat.'”

Before departing the event, attendees – including University of Missouri System President Tim Wolfe and MU Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin – heard the story of a Columbia family touched by autism.

“By the time he was 3, those little red flags became big red flags,” said Alicia Curran, whose son, Sam, 14, has autism. “He almost never responded to his name.”

After years of working with specialists at the Thompson Center and at school, Sam has improved far beyond his original prognosis, even learning to read at age 10.

“You’re the best brother I could ever ask for,” said Sam’s sister, Emily, who addressed her brother on stage alongside her twin sister, Elizabeth. “The truth is, we could all learn a lot from you.”

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