Sally’s burgers Amaze autism kids

Two young participants donned retro attire. 168283 Picture: ROB CAREW

By Bonny Burrows

Three years ago Sally’s Big Ass Burgers made national headlines for its controversial shop sign.
At the weekend, the Upper Beaconsfield burger joint marked the milestone with an autism fund-raiser.
It may seem like a strange idea, but owner Sally said the reasoning was simple.
Among the hate mail and negativity was an autistic boy who laughed when he saw the sign on morning show Sunrise.
“During a time when we were attracting all this negative attention, here was this innocent boy, Tom,” Sally said.
Hearing his story kept her going at a time when people were “running me out of the town”.
So, on Saturday, three years since the program aired, she decided to give back to the boy who had unknowingly done so much.
The fund-raiser, featuring vintage cars, pin-up costumes, air brush tattooing and live entertainment, collected $1698 for Amaze, the Victorian peak body for people on the autism spectrum.
One man, Webby, went a step further to support the cause, getting a tattoo of the shop’s logo on his behind to increase awareness, donated by Dragon Tattoo Co of Mount Evelyn.
Sally said the day was about celebrating the milestone in a fun way, and turning memories of a negative time into a positive.
“It was a fantastic day with a really good vibe and turn-out,” she said.