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Democrat Katie McGinty running for US Senate in Pennsylvania

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Luzerne Fire Department hosting barbecue

<p>HANOVER TWP. &#8212; In this room filled with &#8220;Bills,&#8221; it was obvious which one should receive top &#8220;Bill-ing.&#8221;</p><p>Photographer Bill Tarutis and I were in Hanover Township to interview Bill Malarkey Sr. and his son, Bill Jr. Or as Bill Jr. likes to say, &#8220;Bill #1 and Bill #2. Guess who Bill #1 is.</p><p>I was there to talk to the Malarkeys about a recent incident at the Giants Despair Hill Climb in Laurel Run. Bill Jr. turned 18 at the end of July. He loves NASCAR and wanted to watch the hill climb race.</p><p>Bill Jr. has autism and unexpected loud noises sometimes startle him. When that happens, his dad says Bill Jr. gets scared and his behavior changes. To the uninformed and insensitive, this behavior causes awkward moments.</p><p>I have been around autistic kids and adults for many years through my affiliation with Victory Sports and before that, Challenger Little League, both sports leagues for people with mental and physical disabilities. We&#8217;ve never had any serious problems, but at times these kids/adults can be unpredictable.</p><p>Players with autism have as much fun as any of the participants. We have found that talking to them or offering a helping hand can diffuse most situations. Tolerance goes a long way toward understanding.</p><p>The Malarkeys were at the hill climb this year where Bill Jr. was enjoying the races. It was crowded on the hill where spectators were enjoying the races, some with an adult beverage or two.</p><p>The father and son were about halfway up the hill, between the starting line and the first turn, when a car alarm went off.</p><p>&#8220;Big deal, right?&#8221; Bill Sr. said. &#8220;For someone with autism, this could be a problem - and this day it was.&#8221;</p><p>Bill Sr. said the car alarm set off something in his son&#8217;s head.</p><p>&#8220;I don&#8217;t know why or how, but it happens often,&#8221; he said. &#8220;My son got scared.&#8221;</p><p>Out for dinner one St. Patrick&#8217;s Day, the Malarkeys encountered bagpipers blaring away. That scared Bill Jr. Heck, bagpipes sometimes scare me.</p><p>When Bill Jr. was younger and got scared, he would hit whoever was closest. Thankfully, Bill Sr. said his son doesn&#8217;t hit anymore.</p><p>However, Bill Jr. has learned profanity and screams at the top of his lungs when he gets scared. Bill Sr. and his wife, Leslie, don&#8217;t condone the foul language and acknowledge no one should have to hear it.</p><p>&#8220;Unfortunately, I am not magic, and it takes a lot to calm my son down,&#8221; Bill Sr. said.</p><p>So when this incident happened at the hill climb, Bill Sr. just wanted to get his son back to the car and head for home. He didn&#8217;t want to draw any attention. He held his son&#8217;s hand as they walked down the hill to their car.</p><p>&#8220;A guy started yelling at me to stop the cursing,&#8221; Bill Sr. said. &#8220;Take my word for it, if I could stop it, I would.&#8221;</p><p>So Bill Sr. now has a son in a state of panic and a stranger yelling at him. He told the guy that his son has autism, but the guy wasn&#8217;t listening. He insisted the cursing stop and the two leave.</p><p>It was a tenuous situation. Bill Sr. said he&#8217;s not a tough guy who looks for a fight. He would have done anything to be able to make himself and his son disappear.</p><p>That comment sent chills down by spine. There is no reason in the world why Bill Malarkey should ever wish that he and his son disappear. The key to improving the quality of life for people with mental and/or physical challenges is, in fact, offering them opportunities to have a better quality of life.</p><p>Like playing baseball or going to a dance or enjoying the Giants Despair Hill Climb.</p><p>There is never a good reason for society to expect parents of children of any diagnosis to ever think about not doing something or not going someplace because &#8220;normal&#8221; people can&#8217;t muster the understanding or the tolerance to accept their differences.</p><p>That&#8217;s all Bill Malarkey wants for his son, who happens to be a most likeable young man. Tolerance, understanding, even a helping hand would be most welcome.</p><p>Just like the Giants Despair event, understanding people who are &#8220;different&#8221; could be an uphill battle.</p><p>While sitting in the Malarkeys&#8217; living room, Bill Jr. told me he likes NASCAR, football, ham and cheese hoagies, pizza and the band AC/DC. He told me he went to the junior prom and danced. He said he visited Gettysburg and loves learning about the Civil War. His dad said Bill Jr. is plays games on his iPad.</p><p>Bill Jr. told me he was at a camp at The Lands at Hillside Farms. He told me &#8220;alpacas spit&#8221; and that he cleaned up &#8220;poop.&#8221;</p><p>He will be a senior at Hanover Area this year. I asked him what he likes about school and he said, &#8220;Lunch and going home.&#8221; But if you really want to see him smile, give him cookies or chocolate peanut butter pie.</p><p>People like Bill Jr. don&#8217;t deserve to have strangers yell and scream because they don&#8217;t understand. When Bill Sr. informed the man his son had autism, that should have been enough for the guy to back off.</p><p>The Malarkeys chose not to have more children after Bill Jr. was born.</p><p>&#8220;I wouldn&#8217;t trade him for the world,&#8221; Bill Sr. said.</p><p>Don&#8217;t ask why Bill Sr. took his son to the hill climb.</p><p>Ask your inner self why he shouldn&#8217;t.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Bill O&#8217;Boyle </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_Columnshot-1-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Bill O&#8217;Boyle </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_TTL080415InFocusMalarkeys_bob_11.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Bill Malarkey Sr. of Hanover Township and his autistic son, Bill, 18, talk about food in their living room. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_TTL080415InFocusMalarkeys_bob_11.jpg</photo1><caption1>Bill Malarkey Sr. of Hanover Township and his autistic son, Bill, 18, talk about food in their living room. </caption1><photoCredit1>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

In Focus: Parents of autistic child in Hanover Township seek understanding, tolerance