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Dilo the Dolphin helps people with autism
By Colette Ozanne
Dilo is a fictional dolphin created by Dr. Horace Dobbs – founder of International Dolphin Watch. Horace has now written 5 children’s books involving Dilo and his friends, which have been read by children all over the world.
One person who was inspired, after reading a Dilo story, was Eve Hanf-Enos and the Dilo Group was subsequently formed.
About the President
 Eve was born on September 8th 1971 and at the age of one was diagnosed as autistic. She never spoke, but as she grew older, began to communicate by typing out words on a keyboard, with the help of her mother (a process known as facilitated communication). As the years went by, Eve’s writing ability improved dramatically and she began to produce some astounding poetry. In 1985, Eve saw dolphins for the first time at an aquarium where an amazing event took place. After the show was over and everyone had left, Eve went down to the pool where the dolphin stood up on its tail in the water. The dolphin and Eve looked at one another, eye to eye and contact was made, after which Eve spoke her first word – “good”. Eve’s mother was hoping that this was the beginning of a breakthrough and that Eve would begin to speak permanently, but this was to be just one of a few words that Eve was to speak over the months that followed. Eve didn’t like to see the captive dolphins and later wrote a powerful poem expressing her anger and sadness, but despite this she went back in 1990 to swim with the dolphins. In 1993 a conference was held in New Mexico where Eve’s mother offered to make a contribution on autism and facilitated writing. It was at this conference where Eve was to meet Shizuko Owehand, who subsequently helped Eve to found the Dilo Group in August 1994.
About the founding of the Dilo Group
 After meeting at the conference in New Mexico, Shizuko felt sure that dolphins held the key to solving Eve’s problems in the future and was prepared to travel to the U.S. to help. In August 1994 Shizuko and her friend visited Eve and her mother at their home in Connecticut. Shizuko discovered that Eve was a gifted writer and felt that she could break out of her autism through her writing. She gave Eve a copy of a children’s book written by Horace Dobbs – Dilo and the Call of the Deep. Eve clung onto the book fiercely and took it to bed with her. The next day, via her keyboard, she typed out what she had read. Shizuko also felt that Eve needed a task and suggested to her that she could lead a group to help other autistic people. Eve wrote, “ Wow – I accept it” and agreed to become President. Eve then typed up the words “Dilo Group”. “What would you do as president of the Dilo Group?” asked Shizuko. The answer came back instantly on the keyboard - “I would like to give the gift of joy and laughter to other sad people. I feel groups should be about humour and dipping into mind ideas,” commented Eve. Eve’s presidency of the Dilo Group inspired a torrent of words to pour from her keyboard and she began to write many letters and poems. An example of one of Eve’s poems is below and was written for her grandmother Lotte.
The life and death of Sabina
I would have liked one more bone begging dream
I would have liked one more mud happy run
I would have liked one more taste of that u.p.s. treat
I would have liked one more tummy pressing tickle
I would have liked one more bedding down under my bush
I would have liked breathing one more breath
Most of all I would have liked you to hold me one more time.
Doges or dogs, we liked our water full world
In gondolas or cars we easily got carried around
Tempted by pretty priests or pom-pommed males
I developed my lope
You developed my love
Though body had the last word over brain
Memories of my woman will never die
I may belong to teeming earth
But mind dreams on
Knowing I’ll appear to you again
In some other dog-gone but dog-back hairy hound
(Sabina was the family dog – a poli)
Eve has written many poems and they have been put into two books, which are shown here:
After the founding of the Dilo Group
One year after the Dilo Group had been founded, Eve swam with wild dolphins for the first time at Panama City Beach in Florida and after her experience with the wild dolphins she wrote the following:
20 September 1995
Lolling in water, dolphins I hear laughing among themselves
And next time we’re in their company I'm sure I’ll be laughing with them.
Up ahead loom changes in life direction, but I don’t feel as
Frazzled and hassled as in previous changes, so maybe the dolphins
Know what they’re doing.
Eve’s most recent encounter with wild dolphins was at Bimini in the Bahamas. Information from this trip can be seen on the Operation Sunshine website. www.operationsunshine.org
If anyone would like to find out more about Eve, a good source of information is the book Dolphin Healing by Dr Horace Dobbs – which includes three chapters about Eve.
A note from the Author
 My name is Colette and I am from Milton Keynes in England. I work at a community for adults with special needs where I run a craft workshop. For most of my life I have wanted to swim with dolphins and was very fortunate when in September 2004 I was able to be part of a trip to the Bahamas to swim with wild dolphins. During the same year I attended a talk by Dr Horace Dobbs where I purchased the book Dolphin Healing, and on reading the
three chapters about Eve Hanf-Enos I immediately knew that one day I would meet her, which I did in June 2006.
Spending a week in the Bahamas with Eve, I met many people that have been a huge part of her life in the past - one of them was Shizuko Owehand, who originally helped Eve to found the Dilo Group in August 1994. I am now looking forward to continuing with the good work that Shizuko began and helping Eve as much as possible in the future.
I also feel very strongly that despite her severe autism, Eve has a lot to offer to others. I would therefore like to invite people everywhere to communicate with Eve and be part of The Dilo Group.Please send her your drawings, poems and letters. Maybe you have a story about dolphins yourself.
Contact details are as follows:
For email please send to BOTH of the following: -
evehanfenos@aol.com and colette@cozanne.wanadoo.co.uk
Please send any post to: Colette Ozanne
22 Nicholas Mead
Great Linford
Milton Keynes
Buckinghamshire
MK145EN
England
MANY THANKS
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