Maine Mom Who Created Salsa Company for Autistic Son Dies

Stepanie Lay, the Maine mom who co-founded Maine Tex Grilled Salsa with her autistic son passed away suddenly at her home Sunday afternoon.

According to WMTW, Stephanie was found dead in her home in Windham and authorities say she apparently died of natural causes.

She leaves behind her son, Bryce, for whom she created the salsa company. Bryce was diagnosed with autism at the age of 2 and spent a considerable amount of time in and out of the psychiatric hospital for severe self-harm issues.

Stephanie had said that when Bryce had started to learn to cook at age seven, everything changed for him. "It keeps him busy, and it's methodical. It's the same thing over and over again. Repetition is major in the world of autism." Lay said.

Stephanie had, in the event of her passing, appointed a guardian for Bryce. A family friend also said that Bryce most likely doesn't understand why his mom is gone. However, those family friends located all of the salsa recipes and have plans to keep Bryce's business going.

A GoFundMe has been established for Stephanie's funeral expenses and anything extra will go to help care for Bryce.