On Saturday, July 12, during an ASOC Toastmasters Gavel Club meeting, I heard the sad news that Debora Smith had passed. As a colleague and friend, I wanted to take a moment to write a short note about what Debora meant to me.
I met Debora when she was president of ASOC in 2012, at an ASOC board meeting where I was asking ASOC to support my plans to offer an autism-focused Toastmaster Speechcraft during the Summer of 2012. She was supportive of the event and my bond with ASOC and Debora was forged. As I attended ASOC meetings, I saw how amazing Debora was. She was creative, talented, smart, and had a huge heart.
Our paths diverged in 2016 when Debora left ASOC to focus on her dream project, Autism Resource Mom. I kept an eye on the work she did with this group. Every email, meeting, flier, or post from Debora, was heart felt and beautiful.
Debora’s departure from ASOC resulted in my ascension to President of ASOC which changed my life and is not the point of the post. We occasionally ran into each other. Specifically, I recall meeting up at the Diane Cappel Celebration of Life Memorial where we exchanged our sorrow for the loss of Diane. In the Fall of 2024, Debora and I connected at the This Journey Resource Fair. We exchanged compliments and discussed where we were on our journeys of leading OC autism groups. We vowed that we would start meeting.
In 2025, Debora and I started meeting up for coffee in Tustin. During these monthly meetings we shared our visions, our secrets, and our hopes of greater collaboration in the future. We had plans for cross-promotions and partnership between our two groups. I was looking forward to greater collaboration in the years to come.
Debora is an example of a life well lived. She touched and helped so many. Debora is an inspiration, and she will be greatly missed. My best wishes are extended to her husband Mike and to her son Drew who is a member in the Autism In Entertainment Group and attended the Autism In Entertainment Conference in 2024.
Debora will be greatly missed and may we all use her example as we each try to the live our best lives.
For those who want to celebrate Debora’s life you may be interested in the following:
In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory may be made to Autism Resource Mom: For online donations, visit autismresourcemom.com. Email mike@beardboy.com with questions.
Attend, Debora Smith * Memorial Hike & BBQ Picnic * In Collaboration With SL360 on Sunday, August 17, 2025 at 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM PDT at the Carbon Canyon Regional Park. For details please visit –
https://www.meetup.com/www-autismresourcemom-org/
No RSVP Necessary.
