Special Olympics

Some of you may not know that I work for Easter Seals. It is a non-profit agency that works with kids and adults with all kinds of disabilities. Through this job I have been so blessed with the honor of working with and for some amazing folks. Today I had the opportunity to experience Special Olympics. What a blessing! It was held at a local high school in Little Rock. There were hundreds of kids with disabilities, their parents, teachers and caregivers. It was awesome to see the excitement in there faces. Since working with Easter Seals I have been convinced that these folks are here to remind us of what Jesus looks like. A real life example of his love, grace, tolerance, forgiveness and raw joy. The opening ceremonies were great. There was loud music, which was fun for me, but I thought odd because of all the sensory issues. Anyway, 6 police officers on motorcycles, 2 "black and whites" and a hummer escorted about 15 people running into the stadium with a lit torch. Really that was all that the ceremony consisted of but I have to admit, it totally brought tears to my eyes. The kids cheered their hearts out. They love that their Olympics is like the winter and summer games. We then got to watch them compete in a few events. The walking race, wheelchair race and standing long jump. How great is it that kids with such limited abilities can participate in events that prompt hundreds of people to cheer for them, they get medals and get their names announced on the loud speaker while standing on a podium. It was so wonderful to watch each kid express their happiness and joy in their own way. So many times these kids are looked at like they will never be able to contribute to society and they are such burdens. Well they weren't today. They were athletes and heroes and they even had medals to prove it! I am so thankful to have the opportunity to work with such a fantastic population!