Autism Lights: B.J. and Polly Surhoff
William “B.J.” and Polly Surhoff are from Baltimore, Maryland. Their son Mason has autism. B.J. and Polly Surhoff were part of a group of parents that started an important autism organization in the Baltimore area called Pathfinders for Autism. B.J. Surhoff is a former major league baseball player who currently serves as the President of Pathfinders for Autism. B.J. and Polly Surhoff are Autism Lights for their autism advocacy and their work to help the autism community in the Baltimore, Maryland area through the efforts of Pathfinders.
Baseball Career: B.J. Surhoff played 18 major league baseball seasons between 1987-2005 and he played every position except pitcher. He finished his career with the Baltimore Orioles. B.J. Surhoff’s complete career baseball statistics are available on his player page at MLB.com. In 2007, B.J. Surhoff was inducted into the Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame (Source).
The following is a 2011 news interview featuring B.J. Surhoff discussing his experience being a father of a child with autism and how the work of Pathfinders serves the autism community.
Pathfinders for Autism: Pathfinders for Autism was started in 2000 by a group of parents in the Baltimore, Maryland area. B.J. and Polly Surhoff were part of that group. The Pathfinders for Autism website indicates this about the scope of the organization’s work in the state of Maryland.
Pathfinders for Autism has grown into the State’s largest autism organization dedicated to helping individuals, parents and professionals find resources, supports and training while working to increase the awareness of autism spectrum disorders and advocating for the needs of individuals with autism and their families (Source). Other Information: You can learn more about the helpful autism related services of Pathfinders for Autism by visiting their website at www.pathfindersforautism.org. For more information on B.J. Surhoff visit his Wikipedia page.
Special thanks to B.J. and Polly Surhoff for their dedication to autism. Their vision and efforts are a light to autism in the Baltimore, Maryland area.
Autism Light honors diverse heroes to the world of autism.
Photo: The photo in this post is in the Creative Commons at Wikipediaand was taken by Keith Allison.