Autistic Boy Gets New Home
HARRIS: An autistic boy who lost everything in a wildfire is spending this Thanksgiving in his new home, his parents giving thanks for the generosity of so many people who heard their son's story. Here's CNN's Kara Finnstrom.</s>JONATHAN REYES: I am thankful for my house, which is blue and it keeps me safe.</s>KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One year ago in this class, Jonathan Reyes wrote a note to give his parents on Thanksgiving.</s>JAN REYES, MOTHER: When he brought it home, we cried. A lot.</s>FINNSTROM: Because before they ever read the letter, their entire neighborhood had been ravaged by a wildfire.</s>AUGUSTINE REYES, FATHER: This is all that's left of my house.</s>FINNSTROM: Jonathan's father, Augustine, was the first to see the destruction, and the thought of telling Jonathan overwhelmed him.</s>AUGUSTINE REYES: He's autistic, and he doesn't do well with change, so this is going to be very hard to explain to him.</s>FINNSTROM: Augustine knew his son thrived on familiarity and routines. Now Jonathan was bewildered and afraid.</s>AUGUSTINE REYES: That's why I want you to be real careful, OK?</s>FINNSTROM: Everything he'd loved was gone, from the cherished blanket he clutched to sleep to his fixation, more than 500 Hotwheel cars.</s>JONATHAN REYES: One of my cars!</s>JAN REYES: I wanted to go and try to find him one of his Hotwheels because he has none.</s>FINNSTROM: The toll on Jonathan was huge. He cried whenever he heard sirens, refused to eat, and suffered from tantrums at school and night terrors at the family's temporary home.</s>AUGUSTINE REYES: He'd wake up screaming. Really, the autism kind of overtook him.</s>FINNSTROM (on camera): But then slowly, over months, the intense therapy started working, and the support of hundreds of people touched by Jonathan's story lifted the family. (voice-over): Letters arrived from others with autism. A parent who'd lost a son to cancer sent his Hotwheel collection to Jonathan. More Hotwheels came from Mattel headquarters and even from soldiers in Iraq.</s>JONATHAN REYES: They decided to send me some Hotwheels, and then Mommy and Daddy started to cry.</s>JAN REYES: They're fighting for us, and they took the time out, a whole troop who saw Jonathan in Iraq.</s>AUGUSTINE REYES: We saw how people really opened their hearts to us.</s>FINNSTROM: And now, one year later, a long-awaited return.</s>AUGUSTINE REYES: Are you ready to go home?</s>JONATHAN REYES: Yes.</s>AUGUSTINE REYES: Yes? How long have you been waiting for?</s>JONATHAN REYES: Every day.</s>FINNSTROM: The Reyeses have left their apartment.</s>JONATHAN REYES: Bye!</s>AUGUSTINE REYES: Bye!</s>FINNSTROM: One of the first to rebuild in their beloved neighborhood.</s>AUGUSTINE REYES: Welcome to the new and improved Reyes residence.</s>FINNSTROM: Jonathan showed us his room.</s>JONATHAN REYES: Here's some of my Hotwheels</s>FINNSTROM: This Thanksgiving, Jonathan drew his new home for his parents.</s>AUGUSTINE REYES: It's sort of just like a -- gosh, like a little bird spreading his wings, basically, all over again.</s>FINNSTROM: The Reyeses say they couldn't be more grateful.</s>AUGUSTINE REYES: Looking at Jonathan, he's -- he came back.</s>FINNSTROM: In Silmar, California, Kara Finnstrom for CNN.</s>HARRIS: "Cheating Death" with Dr. Sanjay Gupta starts right now.