Parents who have children with autism will have a chance to meet for a support group at King’s Daughters Medical Center.

The group will meet June 6 from 6 to 8 p.m. This is an initiative that the Willing Hearts Circle began last year as diagnoses of autism has risen in recent years.

“I will say nine or 10 years ago, one in every 150 children had autism,” Autism Committee Chairman Debbie Smith said. “Now, one in every 60 children have autism. It’s a growing thing. I think we’re diagnosing it better.”

Speech pathologist Heather Palmer Smith, who has experience working with a number of children with autism spectrum disorders, will be guest speaker for the event. Debbie Smith said the first step for parents to get support is accepting the diagnosis.

“The younger you can begin to help your child, the better they will be by the time they grow up,” Smith said. “I think it’s getting better, but over the 10 years I’ve been dealing with this, I’ve had parents just break down because they confront their denial about the child.”

Patrick Porter of Porter’s Body Shop described similar experiences back in an interview in April, when Porter was trying to spread awareness during Autism Awareness Month.

“I spoke to someone this week, a mother, and her child is going through the motions of being diagnosed,” Porter said in April. “I told her don’t feel bad. When we were going through that, we were scared.

“I hear the same story over and over,” he said. “Why me? I did that for a little bit, but I woke up one day and I said, no we’re going to embrace this.”

For parents, Debbie Smith said accepting a diagnosis and getting support for their children can have hugely positive effects.

“I have a nephew that has a child (with autism) and they were both in denial,” she said.

After getting help, Smith said the child went on to graduate from Copiah-Lincoln Community College and now works in design and drafting.

Smith said parents with children who have autism should also look into Center Ridge Outpost, a summer camp for children with autism spectrum disorders headed by Dr. Mark Yeager.

“We support that and we have helped it grow,” she said. “It’s been going on its sixth year.”

TEAAM, the autism awareness organization that runs Center Ridge Outpost, has summer programs available for both children and adults. Their website can be found at teaam.org