The Burkhart Walk For Autism 2026
A vibrant subcommunity celebrates overcoming together
On Sunday March 29th, we discovered a large, vibrant community that, as far as we have seen, may have a tendency to be overlooked by many Lubbockites. Oddly though, it’s a subcommunity that runs very broadly across all sections of this city. Of course we speak of the families whose lives have been touched by Autism.
As we strolled about the 2026 Burkhart Walk For Autism mixing and mingling and making photos, we saw several familiar faces, which is a decent indication of just how large this segment of our city truly is.
As we understand it, approximately 1 in 31 children fall somewhere on th sepectrum. Sunday’s event revealed to us just how broad that spectrum is.
Although this event was new to us, Jennifer Hamrick, Director of the Burkhart Center, told us that it was actually their 21st ‘Walk’, and “from the numbers and the great weather, this is probably the biggest event that we’ve had.”
The Burkhart Center strives to “provide services at low or no cost to families” she continued, so the walk “is our number one fundraiser.”
There were many tables and tents set up around the track in the northeast corner of Texas Tech campus. We stopped and talked with the reps at several of them, to get a feel for what resources were available.
One of the programs that caught our attention is the Burkhart Center Transition Academy. Hamrick explained that it was essentially a “vocational training program, but it also has an alumni group where they get together and we still facilitate groups based on what their needs are.”
“But that’s been one of our biggest programs that has had the most success stories because they leave there either completely independent, or living on their own, paid employment, which is huge for them.”
That news alone bolstered our mood and brightened our day. As we veered back toward the in-field area, we made a few pictures, and mixed and mingled with the families as they circled the track, each clan clad in joyful colors.
Lawrence Brown, a barber and owner of 2151 Hair Lounge, told that he and his crew were walking in support of his nephew Cashton. When we spoke to him, they were on their first lap around the track, but they planned to check out all the resource providers when they finished walking.
Although we didn’t stay long, we did leave feeling like we better understood the kinds of autism services Lubbock has to support those in need. We also left feeling uplifted. Chalk it up to all of the beautiful families we saw, walking it out together on a lovely day in Lubbock, Texas, USA!
Find out more about the The Burkhart Center for Autism Education by going to their website.
