Philly's newest 'It' girl works the red carpet to raise awareness about autism

YES, TERRI Matthews looked fierce in that K. Nicole mermaid gown at last night's red gala kickoff for Philly Small Business Fashion Week.

But don't let the pretty fool ya.

Since landing here less than two years ago, Matthews has become one of Philly's biggest "It" girls, catching the attention of producers of not one but two local reality TV shows and also being named one of XIX's Most Fashionable Women in Philadelphia. Admirers have been known to flock to local stores seeking the exact same eyeglass frames she got from Omega Optical, or the Bond No. 9 signature fragrance she purchases from Saks Fifth Avenue. But Matthews is not just about being on the red carpet and keeping up with appearances. The 37-year-old California transplant wants to use the spotlight to call attention to autism.

Her son Jaden, 8, was diagnosed with the neurodevelopmental disorder, which affects one in 68 children, when he was just a toddler. The diagnosis was devastating for the mother of three, who vowed to do whatever she could to help the boy achieve. At the time, Matthews was married to a successful entrepreneur and working as a vice president for human resources at financial service giant BB&T, so she could afford her son's $900-per-hour specialist visits and the upward of $200-a-week grocery bill it took to feed him his gluten-free diet.

But it nagged at her that so many other parents with autistic children couldn't, especially since autism costs a family roughly $60,000 a year and is considered the most rapidly growing serious developmental disability, according to autism experts. So, in 2013, she quit her six-figure job, where she was responsible for the needs of 34,000 employees, and formally launched her nonprofit, which she calls Jaden's Voice (jadensvoice.org). Its mission is simple: to help less-fortunate families struggling with autism get access to the kinds of resources her son is lucky to have.

This morning, Matthews will attempt to launch the biggest phase of her Jaden's Voice initiative by hosting a breakfast at the Pyramid Club, where she'll talk up her plan to create a $5.5 million, state-of-the-art multipurpose center where people dealing with autism can get support. She'll present renderings of two campuses she's considering building on in Mantua and Chester.

Matthews, who told me she will invest $1 million of her own money into the project, hopes the many business leaders and government contacts she has made during the year and a half she's been getting to know local movers and shakers will be inspired to contribute or help navigate the red tape involved with launching such a facility.

"I really need them to help me," Matthews said.

Matthews sacrifices so much of herself for the sake of others that it's only fair that the favor be returned. In addition to help raise awareness about autism, Jaden's Voice provides grants to families with autistic children and offers other services. Last week, I was moved practically to tears when I talked with parents whose lives have been touched by Jaden's Voice. One is a struggling, single mother of three with three children who have some form of autism.

Jessica Burrus, 27, felt her children weren't getting what they needed at school and wanted a fresh start for them. She tried making calls to get them transferred but got nowhere. Because Burrus works as an assistant manager at a convenience store, she's limited in the amount of time she can make personal phone calls during working hours. Frustrated, she reached out to Jaden's Voice, and Matthews herself began contacting administrators on the young mother's behalf. Within weeks, Burrus' children were transferred.

"If Jaden's Voice hadn't helped me, my children would have still been at the [former] school," Burrus told me happily.

Then there was Lindsey Dollard, a military wife in Quantico, Va., who has two children on the autism spectrum. When she picked up her phone Friday, her voice sounded weary and sad.

But as we chatted about how her 4-year-old was communicating better after receiving an iPad paid for by a grant from Jaden's Voice, Dollard's mood brightened considerably. Her daughter, Logan, who is nonverbal, now uses an iPad app to indicate when she wants milk or maybe her shoes. As I spoke with Dollard, in the background I could hear the little girl verbalizing with a series of squeals and other noises. Having an iPad of her own has made a huge difference in Logan's ability to get her needs met. Dollard, whose husband has been deployed six times, told me, "I really admire [Matthews'] strength and her heart and the direction she's going with Jaden's Voice."

You'd have to have a heart of stone not to.

Blog: ph.ly/HeyJen