“When Quinn was born, he was a big kid. In my dad’s words, ‘I finally have a middle linebacker.’ After a few years, he started hitting milestones before I did as a baby. Everyone thought he would be the more athletic one. His muscles started to deteriorate as he grew up. We joke that he gave me part of his athletic ability.”
Be it baseball or football season, Quinn is always there to see the games. When his brother has practice, he walks the track around the field with his physical therapist.
“He’s a happy-go-lucky kid, always smiling, very loving and an awesome brother to be around. He’s taught me a lot, probably more than I’ve taught him,” said Dalessio. “Even though he can’t play football or any other sport, he can always play through me. It’s always me and him, it’s not just me.”
“Ash really brings out that happiness” in Quinn, said Glen Rock Coach Jim Kurz.
Despite the fact that it is Dalessio on the playing field, he is also his brother’s biggest fan. Tattooed on Dalessio’s arm is a puzzle piece, his signature and the word “Quinn-vincible,” Quinn’s team name. He even wears his team shirt – though worse for wear – under his jersey every game.
“In baseball and soccer, he always looks up to see where Quinn is in the stands,” said their mom, Jenn Camp. “He’d catch a glimpse, and give him a little nod.”
Camp said she’s inspired by how much Dalessio’s friends and teammates include Quinn. Having their proms on the same night, the two brothers got to take pictures together in their best attire.
The thing that Dalessio said he wishes more people understood is that those on the autistic spectrum aren’t all that different, and are deserving of respect, the same as anyone else.
“They might do things differently than us, but they understand the difference between right and wrong. Just because they are on the spectrum doesn’t mean they should be talked down to in any way,” he said.
A few weeks ago, during a run at the Glen Rock Arboretum, Dalessio was partnered with a boy who was on the autistic spectrum. When the boy wandered over the dividing line during the run, a passing woman yelled and cursed at him. The Glen Rock player stood up for the teen, believing her reaction was inappropriate.
“He hugged me because he got so nervous,” he said. “The way she reacted was disgraceful.”
