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KERNERSVILLE -- Grayson Sherrell was a happy child, bright, playful and fun-loving. It wasn't until his second birthday that Roger and Donna Sherrell noticed that their beautiful boy was losing that brightness.

"Grayson's exceptional vocabulary as a little boy started fading," said his mother. "He knew a lot of words when he was very young," she said.

"He had been so smart, and now he was going backwards; there were no more words," Donna Sherrell said. "He would not make eye contact with you; and he acted like he didn't hear you talking to him," she said.

Grayson had autism, a neurological and developmental disorder. The second year of Grayson's life was frantic, as his parents searched for answers to their son's problems, and worked feverishly to help him recover.

"Right before his third birthday, we got him talking again; he had a real high-pitched voice," said Donna Sherrell.

"He could say his alphabet again," she said. What had seemed like it had been wiped away seemed to be returning, said Roger Sherrell, 38, a paramedic. "The tutors and the teachers who worked with him did a real good job," he said.

At age 3, Grayson, who was born in June 2002, was in a special program at Sedge Garden Elementary School. On Nov. 5, 2003, the Sherrells' second son, Carson, was stillborn. Their daughter, Mahala, is now 3.

At 5, Grayson was enrolled at Cash Elementary. "Between the ages of 3 to 5, you can get financial help with treatment," Donna Sherrell said.

Tutoring and therapy helped Grayson regain some of his former abilities -- and interests. He appeared to be making good progress: "He was very coordinated, and he loved to swing and play," she said.

In addition to getting help at school, "we had to have a special program at home, and the people who helped were so wonderful," Donna said.

"All of the people at both of the schools he attended do a great job," Roger Sherrell said.

"Grayson would ride his bike, and swing on the swing in the backyard. We were really amazed at times at the things he did," said his mother. "He was so visual, and could play on the computer at a very young age. He was very determined," she said.

Grayson had a nice smile and bright eyes. "We were very encouraged," she said. His "infectious giggle," as his parents described it, could light up a room.

Soon after his sixth birthday, on Aug. 8 this year, Grayson drowned.

Grayson loved going to his family's church, The Summit Church of Kernersville, and also going to church with his grandparents, Robert and Betty Saunders, in Gastonia. He visited there often and enjoyed playing while he and his grandfather spent time in the backyard.

It was on a visit to the Saunders home that Grayson was helping his grandfather fix a playground in the backyard when his grandfather went inside to get something. A minute or so later, when Robert Saunders returned, Grayson wasn't in the yard.

That was at 4:20 p.m. and a search was begun. At 4:30 p.m. a neighbor some distance down the street called. Grayson had been found lying in their swimming pool in an "out-of-sight" place behind their house, Roger Sherrell said.

Efforts by rescue workers failed to revive the boy whose loving nature and big smile had brightened the world around him, his father said.

The Sherrells are trying to keep his memory alive by helping other children with autism. They established the Grayson Foundation.

A group of 31 adults -- Team Grayson -- participated in the 10th annual Ribbon Run of the Autistic Society of N.C. in Raleigh last month in Grayson's honor.

The first goal for the foundation is to raise $1,000 in donations, Roger Sherrell said.

"We want to start first by helping the children at Cash School," he said. "Then as we raise more money, we might be able to help children in other schools."

Contact Bob Burchette at bburchette@triad.rr.com