Autism remains ever elusive and on so many fronts, and although progress had been made with this extraordinarily complex disability, it is to a certain extent treatable, but, "We don't know what causes it, there is no cure, and it's a lifelong disability," said Laurie Cramer, director of the Autism Society of Greater Akron. "Now, it's the fastest developmental disability in the country, truly an epidemic."

According to the National Institutes of Health, "Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a range of complex neurodevelopment disorders, characterized by social impairments, communication difficulties, and restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior."

Cramer and her husband Gregg, who have a 10-year-old son Robbie, know firsthand about autism when their oldest son, Philip, now 12, was diagnosed at age three.

The holiday season brings wonderful moments shared with family and friends, but it also can bring unnecessary stress, such as what to give to those loved ones.

Instead of waiting in long lines or spending countless hours browsing Amazon's website for that "perfect gift" for your family or friend, try a more unconventional gift giving approach. Scrap the gifts for each other, and give to others.

For example, Goodyear employes adopt familes from Greenlead Family Center. They are clients of from all of the center's departments, said Dina Younis, fund development and marketing coordinator at Greenleaf Family Center. Goodyear delivers the wrapped gifts which are distributed to the families.

Nearly 200 people gathered at the Hilton Akron/Fairlawn for Akron Community Foundation’s 56th annual meeting, which featured stories of growth, grants and personal philanthropy.

Outgoing Treasurer Mark Allio announced that as of March 31, the community foundation held more than $135 million in philanthropic capital, a 7.45 percent growth over the previous year. The foundation’s investment returns of more than 12 percent continued to outperform the market average, he said.