Son with autism thanks mom for supporting him through 9 years of college

LuisErnesto Rojas Gonzalez and his mom are celebrating a new era this Mother's Day after nine years of study, Gonzalez has earned his post-secondary degree.

He hopes to become a video game developer.

But the journey getting to this point is one that began in El Salvador, always with his mother, Marlene Fisher,by his side. Especially after he was diagnosed with autism.

Gonzalez, 29, left the Central American country in the 1990s. He and his mother immigrated to Canada when he was four, largely so that he could have access to more opportunity for work and for school, the Vaughan man said.

Even then, his mother made sacrifices, he said.

Shortly after arriving in Canada, Gonzalezwas diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum. His mother responded by connecting him with support networks to help him improvein school, becoming an advocate for him and for others with special needs, he said.

"She would, I don't want to say, 'Go to war,'but she was always fighting whoever she needed to, to make sure I was getting treated better."

That supportcontinued throughout his adult life as he spent nine years working toward a post-secondary degree, graduating from George Brown College's video game development program this spring.

"Honestly, not a day goes by without me thinking about my mother," he said. "I'm able to do things like normal people can because of her."

Fisher and Gonzalez were featured as part of CBC Toronto's 6ix in the 6ix Mother's Day contest.