Having someone who has been through something similar helps. Just remember that people with autism pick who they call friends with difficulty and sometimes for random reasons - one day he wore a blue shirt so I decided to make him a friend. They also have been known to ask people they see as normal what "normal" is - which sometimes end up being very personal questions.
It's almost like they need a guide to society.
Thank you for taking this on, you never know how much of a difference you can make in someone else's life.