An autistic superhero: Brothers with autism create comic book series

Brothers with autism create character who battles evil forces that make up the League of Diseases

June 18, 2012|By Milton D. Carrero, Of The Morning Call

Autism was a treacherous villain for Lonnie Smith and his two sons until they began looking at it more closely.

As an infant, his oldest son, Kambel, was unusually withdrawn. By age 6, the boy had turned to "uncontrollable fits of rage."

"It was rough in the beginning," Smith says. "I thought maybe he was a bad kid."

Kambel's social difficulties led doctors to diagnose him as mentally retarded. The boy, now a 25-year-old man, was medicated to control his anger. But the drugs made him more withdrawn and increasingly depressed. The Telford family needed other ways to balance Kambel's moods.

"You're not put here on earth to be medicated and to drain what you have inside," the father says.

Smith was determined to find Kambel's talents. But it wasn't easy at first. Managing his son's most pressing needs was difficult enough. Kambel was almost 10 when his dad ran into an unseen surprise.

While cleaning an air conditioning vent in Kambel's room, Smith came across a stockpile of crumbled papers. The exhaust was filled with Kambel's drawings, which he had been creating and hiding for months. At age 15, Kambel received an oil painting set as a gift. Although he didn't have training, Kambel took to painting and drawing as if he were a professional artist.

His father clung to this gift and began using his imagination to develop his son's abilities. He needed something that would engage Kambel and make him feel good about himself.

That was the germ to the "Survivor Evolution" comic books, a project Smith has used to not only develop his son's abilities, but also to work on his own knack. His high school teacher had always told Smith that he had a gift for writing. But he never had the motivation to do anything with his skill, not until he saw it as way to help his kids.

"I just want to make them aware of what is inside them," Smith says, "so that they can use it when they become adults."

With the help of Kambel and his youngest son, Kantai, now 17, Lonnie Smith developed the plot to a four-part series of comic books. "Flames of Avasten," the second volume in the series, was recently released and can be purchased as an e-book. The group is working on the last two parts of the series.

Kantai's participation is integral to the family project, though much more subtle. He is Smith's link to the young audience. Although Kantai was also diagnosed within the autism spectrum, he can function fairly well in social situations. He is responsible for coming up with the characters' names and suggesting situations that would enhance the plot.

The story centers on Survivor, an autistic superhero who has the ability to heal. He is constantly battling the evil forces that make up the League of Diseases, which endanger children's well-being.

Kantai, who has a knack for computers, wants to create a game to go along with the "Survivor Evolution" series. His father is making arrangements at Kantai's school, Souderton Area High School, to see if they can help develop Kantai's interest in software development.

"My concern was that they would grow up and have something," Smith says. "I don't want them to depend on the system. I want them to have something of their own. Something they can do together, and that's why I pulled them together on the project."

The project is a metaphor for a greater one: life. Smith has focused on getting the brothers collaborating so that they can help each other through their limitations. Kambel is still prone to depression. His drawings and his relationship to Kantai are often his greatest lifelines.

Smith knows that he won't be able to be near his children forever. He suffers from a blood disease that two years ago threatened to "take him out."

That added to his inspiration for the book series. Each malady is represented by a villain in the series. Though many of characters in the League of Diseases embody forms of cancers, depression is always a threat. It is represented by a character named Cheeo, which preys on Survivor's weaknesses.

"Cheeo, this guy is after you," Lonnie Smith tells his children every time they get stuck in a slump. "He's trying to put you down. Fight him. Survivor fights him in the book, you fight him, too.

"And it works because in a sense it is true. It's a little guy in your head. He comes after me, you, he comes after everybody and you just have to know how to fight him off. And surrounding yourself with motivation and inspirational things helps. It helps a lot."

More on "Survivor Evolution":


Find your knack

Tips to help you see your children's talents:

Look closely: As you watch your children around the house, keep in mind that those funny, unusual and cute things they do may be a sign of a knack.

Try stimulating environments: Expose them to museums, the zoo, parks, learning supply stores, toy stores and any vibrant places that might spark inspiration. Pay close attention to their reactions. See what catches their interest.

Develop their abilities: Once you find a particular skill, it's your job to find out how it connects to your child's life. Research online for ways to use that knack constructively. Develop a plan to incorporate it into their lives.

Source: Lonnie Smith of Telford

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