ARLINGTON- Zachary Haney is like a lot of 9-year-olds — curious and full of energy. Yet, one thing that separates Zachary from other kids is his health; he lives with P.E.D.N.O.S — Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified. The disorder is a form of Autism.

Zachary’s mom knew his special needs, needed a special school. She enrolled him in the private school, Children’s University. The campus had small classroom sizes so Zachary could learn without being overwhelmed, or lost in a large classroom.

Zachary was thriving at the school; he made good grades and good friends. But soon, his world was turned upside-down.

“It was about 4:30 in the morning, my oldest nephew Dominic went to pick up his girl from work, I was in the shower,” Zachary’s Aunt Laura Haney recalled. “Dominic got home and there was a fire in the living room.”

That fire was caused by a short in the A/C system, and it quickly spread through the house where he and his mom lived with his aunt Laura, and his Grandmother. It looked like everyone got out of the house, but then Zachary’s mom went back inside to rescue her mother.

“Both my mother and sister were gone,” Haney said.

After losing his mother, grandmother and his home, Zachary wanted to go to the one place that was still there for him — his school.

The Brent Woodall Foundation in Las Colinas is a non-profit group that works with special needs kids. The organization hopes to raise $15,000 for Zachary’s education fund, so he can still go to the school that has helped him feel like every other kid.

To donate you can visit www.woodallkids.org/supportzachary