A family in the Bronx is helping raising awareness about autism, hoping to open up the conversation when it comes to the disorder

Kyle and Liza McLean have a family of four on a mission to raise awareness for their daughter Kourtney who is unique.

"She was diagnosed with autism with special needs, no parent is ready for that announcement,” says Liza.

It's a diagnosis they say most people aren’t familiar with.

"You know when I do go to places, Kourtney makes noises, it’s called stemming. She hums a lot, makes noise that people don’t know where its coming from, so I got a lot of stares, got a lot of dirty looks,” says Liza.

However, the McLeans didn't give up. They let the misunderstanding turn into their purpose.

"It was beyond overwhelming, but it was a mission we knew that we had to accomplish,” says Liza.

Together they started PuzzleLife.Voice, a clothing company that opens the conversation.

"So I started putting puzzle pieces on my clothes now when I went to a park, when I went to a store parents would ask me ‘oh that’s nice, what’s that about’ and I would explain to them. That’s how the conversation started,” says Kyle.

They've gone from painting puzzle pieces on clothes to creating an entire line with everything from shoes to T-shirts and masks.

"Just because they can’t speak doesn’t mean they don’t understand and love; we want to go out in the park, go out in public and be viewed like everyone else,” says Kyle.