For this Thursday Thrive entry, I want to talk about an organization that is near and dear to my heart. My sister started Shoot for the Stars nearly three decades ago. The organization provides the opportunity for individuals with special needs to participate in extracurricular activities.
You see, my mom used to work as a teacher's assistant for students with special needs. My sister and I grew up around her students. We volunteered in her class. At times, she brought her students home with her, and we babysat them. Her students were her children, not as much as my sister and me but pretty close.
In our early twenties, my sister decided to coach a softball team. I helped. The girls ranged in age from 13-17 years old. On our team, we had five girls with special needs. These girls worked so hard to keep up with the others on the team. The board told us that accommodations would be made for our team. None were. We didn't win any games but had lots of fun.
In the game that kicked off Shoot for the Stars, one of our girls who hadn't gotten a hit all year made contact with the ball. This girl had never been on base during a game. She had no idea what to do. In practice, we ran along beside her and showed her where she needed to go next. In a game, we couldn't do that. What happened next still warms my heart.
Our girl ran to first base. The other team overthrew the ball. My mom told the girl to run. She didn't know where to go. The other team showed her. Not only did they show her where to run, they overthrew the ball at second and told her to run to third. Same thing happened at third. Our girl scored. The other team congratulated her.
With that game, we saw true sportsmanship. My sister had the idea to start a league specifically for individuals with special needs. We opened the game up to the siblings and anyone else who wanted to play. We didn't keep score. It was the game in its purest form. Through the years, we added more sports.
About ten years ago, our boy looked at me and said, "You'll come watch me when I'm in a play?"
At the time, I worked as props for a theater. He rode over with me when I took the props. I said, "Sure, what are we going to do?"
"Cats," he said.
"When are we going to do it?"
"July."
The rest is history. We started doing plays. Over the years, we did The Wizard of Oz, Beauty and the Beast, and Fairy Princess Audrey. We also did talent shows. Our guys had grown into adults. I can't believe how fortunate I am to have these guys in my life for nearly thirty years.
When I started graduate school, I offered my position to someone else. No one would take it, so we had to stop doing shows for a few years. As graduate school drew to a close, I contacted the Pixy and attempted to set September 21st, my mom's birthday. That date was booked, so we took September 14th.
Shoot for the Stars feels so natural to me at this point in my life. We decided to do a talent show this year. Kind of trying to get our footing back. I can't wait until performance. It's been like a piece of me has been missing for the past three years.
I love my students. I love my job. I love everything about it. However, Shoot for the Stars are my people. This is my space. This is my home. It's good to be back. What about you? Where do you thrive?
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