Autism made J.J. different from other kids. Not only was he smaller than everyone his age, his mind didn't work like other people's minds.

At 17 months, the Serassios took him to The Children's Center in Kearns. It specializes in preschoolers who don't talk or don't smile when happy or cry when hurt. He was the youngest child in the program at the time.

A child psychiatrist once told his parents the best they could expect for their son was a future stocking shelves in a store or stacking books in a library. He would never marry or have a family.

Darla Serassio didn't buy it.

"I could see in him more potential than that," she said. "The reality turned out to be he was an A student, besides one B in chemistry. He wanted to be an attorney."

The Children's Center's reward-the-positive, ignore-the-negative approach worked wonders with J.J. Through the years he proved to be bright, though misunderstood due to his personality quirks.

He often fixated on things. For a while it was lawn mowers. He had to see everyone's lawn mower. For another period it was lines on the road. He wasn't satisfied until he touched them to know if they were painted or plastic. He took no pleasure in food. He had to be reminded to eat.

If you told him to go jump in a lake and there was a lake around, he would do it. He took everything literally. A teacher once told him to hit the wall, meaning for him to settle down. J.J. hit the wall, breaking his hand.

Still, J.J. functioned at a high enough level to attend and do well academically in public school.

"He certainly didn't appear autistic," said Jeannie Anderson, a Riverton High special education teacher, adding there was no question he could have attended college.

J.J. lived a typical teen life. He had a driver's license, he dated and hung out with friends. He and his dad worked on his Camaro together. He was an Eagle Scout. He took the initiative to start his own tile business, a skill he learned helping his married sister with a home project. He was a whiz at building things with Legos and doing jigsaw puzzles. He enjoyed chess and played the trumpet and piano.

J.J. worked hard in high school. "Grades were extremely important to him," Anderson said. "He was frustrated when he didn't get good grades."

Late in adolescence and early adulthood, people with autism are vulnerable to secondary mental health problems like anxiety and depression.

Near the end of his sophomore year, J.J. went through major depression. He spent three days in the hospital and was prescribed medication.