This page contains information on the Extreme Makeover edition that featured the O'Donnell Family, the family with the largest number of biologiocally related autistic children documented in the United States.  We have included the software donated to the family and articles written about them in their local newspaper.

Autism Coach Software Donated to Family Featured on Extreme Makeover

Each of the O'Donnell children featured on the February 18, 2007 edition of Extreme Makeover received an HP lap-top configured with Autism Coach software.  

We selected the following software for each child based upon need and interest:

Austin family wins home makeover

Deteriorating home to be replaced, tailored to meet special needs of autistic children.

By Patrick George
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Monday, December 11, 2006

About 8 a.m. Sunday, a man with a megaphone stood outside a Northwest Austin home to deliver a rather unorthodox wake-up call: "Good morning, O'Donnell family!"

It was the shout that the family of eight had been hoping for.

The man with the megaphone was Ty Pennington, the host of ABC's popular "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." The O'Donnells learned officially that morning that their house was about to be torn down and that a new one would be built from the ground up in just a week's time.

The O'Donnells — Jeanette, Patrick and their six children — will get a new home without the mold, roof leaks, rotted wood and foundation and structural problems that plague their current house. However, the makeover also will give the family technological and educational tools to help better meet the needs of their children, five of whom have autism.

Jeanette, 45, once told the American-Statesman that she cries over episodes of the show. Now the mother of six is part of it.

The O'Donnells have been whisked away to a camp for autistic kids in Crested Butte, Colo. All the furniture in the home will be packed and stored today, and the house itself will be demolished Tuesday. Although the house will be different, the builders, carpenters, plumbers and designers will go through painstaking steps to make this their home.

"They are truly an amazing family," said Diane Korman, the show's senior producer. "We got hundreds of letters from school and community leaders telling us about the O'Donnells, telling us how amazing they are. They struggle with their kids, but they still love to volunteer at school."

Of the O'Donnell children — Caitlin, 15, Deirdre, 12, Erin, 10, Meaghan, 8, Patrick, 6, and Kiernan, 5 — all but Meaghan have varying degrees of autism, a brain disorder that impairs the way people talk, play, relate to others and respond to the environment.

They are the only known family in America with five biological autistic children.

Patrick works two jobs to make ends meet, but, according to a statement, the bank was about 30 days from foreclosing on the family's deteriorating home when Pennington's yell pierced the morning.

"Jeanette is the best mom in the world," said Brenda Wood, a family friend and special education teacher at Summitt Elementary School. Wood, who has taught the O'Donnells' five autistic children, said: "They are sweet, precious and interesting kids. They are just an awesome family, and they really deserve this."

"We're working with their teachers and doctors to make sure everything in the home meets their needs," Korman said. "We want the absolute best. With five autistic kids, we really had to do our homework."

Although Korman could not reveal too much about the reconstruction — that would ruin the surprise — she did say the artwork of oldest daughter, Caitlin, would make it into the new home.

"Caitlin is an incredible artist who has drawn all over the walls of the old home," Korman said. "We're going to find a way to put those into the new house because it wouldn't be theirs if it didn't have the artwork."

Ariana Freitag, 8, said she's been assigned the task of helping design a new room for her best friend Meaghan. She can't go into detail about what she has planned, but she can't wait to get started.

"I'm really excited," Freitag said. "It's gonna be so much fun."

Korman said she also hopes to pay off the family's mortgage and plans to do it Austin-style with a benefit concert at La Zona Rosa tonight at 6. Proceeds from the concert by country artist Trace Adkins will go to help the O'Donnell family.

Work on the home will continue 24 hours a day until the O'Donnells return next week. Georgetown-based builder Jimmy Jacobs Custom Homes will construct the house for free, and the entire block will be cordoned off while the show is filming. The network plans to air the episode in late February or early March.

Mike Boudreau, Jeanette's brother, said his family is overwhelmed by the windfall.

"It's amazing," Boudreau said. "This really is a God-given gift, and we're totally blown away."

Warm welcome for 'Makeover' family

After week away, O'Donnells return to new home, financial help.

By Andrea Ball
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Monday, December 18, 2006

There were beauty queens and Round Rock Donuts, cameras on wheels and babies in strollers, dogs, dust, tears, crowds and, of course, the O'Donnell family.

One week ago, most people had never heard of Patrick and Jeanette O'Donnell. The couple lived in relative obscurity as they raised their six children, five of whom have autism, in a two-story house in Northwest Austin.

Extreme Makeover' host Ty Pennington, right, introduces the O'Donnells to some of the folks responsible for their new home. From left are Patrick, Meaghan, Erin, Caitlin, dad Patrick, Deirdre and mom Jeanette. Not visible is the youngest O'Donnell, Kiernan.

Then came "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition."

On Sunday, the low-key family became reality-television stars as they saw their new house for the first time before a crowd of about 3,000.

"Thank you so much," a crying Jeanette said as she hugged custom home builder Jimmy Jacobs, who built the house for free.

The O'Donnells are ordinary people living with extraordinary challenges.

Five of their children — Caitlin, 15, Deirdre, 12, Erin, 10, Patrick, 6, and Kiernan, 5 — have some form of autism, a disorder that impairs the way people talk, play, relate to others and respond to the environment.

Meaghan, 8, is the only O'Donnell child without autism.

For years, the family scraped by on Patrick's salary as a production supervisor at a mail center while Jeanette stayed home with the kids.

But money problems always dogged the family.

"Extreme Makeover" changed all that.

Armed with its 17 million to 20 million viewers and a celebrity cast, "Makeover" secured donations from more than 300 companies.

During the past week, the family's former 2,200-square-foot house — which had mold, leaks and structural damage — was razed and rebuilt into a 4,500-square-foot showplace.

They also raised $200,000 through a benefit concert at La Zona Rosa and individual donations, said "Makeover" senior producer Diane Korman.

Of that, $140,000 will pay off the mortgage on the old house. The remainder is for household expenses.

"So much goodness came from the community and the neighbors," Korman said.

Only a handful of people know exactly what the interior of the new house looks like.

"Makeover" staffers are tight-lipped about the home, refusing to tip their hand before the show's expected airdate of February or March.

But on Sunday, the Hawkshead Drive construction set was rife with rumors.

The house has seven bedrooms!

A trampoline room!

A circular patio!

Laptops for every child!

"Makeover" officials have said the new home will include plenty of space for the whole family and features to aid with the children's therapy and treatments.

But that's all they will say.

"We want it to stay a surprise for the viewers," Korman said.

Though the details of the new house were on spectators' minds, many people said they came out to support the O'Donnells.

"It's an inspiring family, an inspiring story," said Joy Legan, who volunteered at the construction site after reading about the O'Donnells in the newspaper. "This is what the holidays are all about."

Others came out to enjoy the public spectacle.

Neighbors watched the show from their roofs with binoculars, while other nearby homeowners offered doughnuts and chairs to passers-by.

Some held colorful signs reading, "WELCOME HOME O'DONNELL FAMILY!!!"

Bejeweled beauty queens stopped by in tiaras and jeans to pose for pictures with admirers.

Fans, sweaty from the afternoon sun and gritty from construction dust, fell into hysterics at the very sight of "Makeover" host Ty Pennington.

"We love you, Tyyyy!" a middle-aged blonde screamed before collapsing into giggles.

Then, sometime after 2 p.m., the O'Donnells rolled down Hawkshead in a black limousine, their view of the house blocked by a massive bus.

After a few minutes of hugs and thank-yous, the big bus rolled away, revealing the new gold and limestone house.

Jeanette cried. Deirdre's jaw dropped. The crowd screamed. Caitlin covered her ears.