After searching through all of our dream day ideas, we decided to start with Kinsey's dream day! We looked over her paper and found that she loved Matthew West and Jeremy Camp. As a group, we did some research and found that they were actually on a tour together right now called the "All in Tour." We knew this was meant to be. For the next few days, we worked hard researching phone numbers and emails. We wrote out many different emails in order to receive ticket donations. We called the managers of Jeremy Camp, Matthew West, and places that are going to host the concerts. We also called K Love, and other organizations that we thought may be able to donate tickets. Through this process, we were continuously directed into the right direction and ended up contacting Ann Wiley, who is the organizer of the concert in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Ann was able to give us tickets at a discounted price of $7 each. This was very generous as the original tickets were ranging from $40-80. Therefore, Grace, Victoria, and I are now fortunate enough to take Kinsey out on her dream day to a concert with her two favorite singers! We reached out to Ann and asked if there was any way for Kinsey to be able to meet Jeremy and Matthew in order to make her day that much better. She told us that she would look into it and let us know as soon as possible. This concert will take place in Fort Wayne, IN on November 15. Our next step was to contact Kinsey's parents. I was able to call her mom and let her know exactly what was going on. She thought it was a great idea as well and was happy to let Kinsey go to the concert with us. As this process was happening, we were also working hard to receive a grant from GenerationOn. We filled out information about our project, and a few days later, we were blessed to receive a $250 grant. This money allowed us to pay for the tickets and other items that we will need to obtain for Kinsey's dream day. When we present these tickets to Kinsey for the concert, we are also planning on giving her a little gift basket containing a few of her favorite things. We ordered many little things off of amazon including the basket. Furthermore, we went to Walmart and Hobby Lobby and bought Kinsey her favorite candy, cookies, a prayer book, and a few other little things that we knew she would enjoy. We are also planning on making her a card and making a poster with her for the concert. The last few days, we were also working hard to receive a bigger grant from Hancock Health. Although we have not heard back yet, we are hoping to soon. In the end, these last few weeks have been a great success as we have almost created our first dream day and have received a grant to help us along the way. I am so excited to continue on this journey and see where Dream Day can take us!
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Wanting to complete as many Dream Days as we could, we started as soon as possible. We first presented our project during pitch day to our administrators. During this, we discussed why we chose our project, what it is, and what we will be doing. To get started, we contacted Mrs. Westerman who works with the recourse students at New Palestine High School. We were able to receive a class roster and choose a few students that we wanted to take on this project. We then made a packet that we were able to distribute to their parents. This packet included a description of Dream Day, a letter to the parents, past projects, and a ‘getting to know you’ page. Once we finished creating the packet, Grace, Victoria, and I went to the recourse room in order to get to know some of the students on a deeper level. We filled out a page getting to know them and tried to come up with the best dream day possible for that particular student. We have already received back five papers with dream days that we are getting started on. One of the students loves Christian music, and her favorite singers are Jeremy Camp and Matthew West. After doing research, we found that they are actually on a tour right now together; therefore, we are working on getting tickets as donations. In order to get these tickets, Victoria and I called K Love, a radio station, and other numbers listed on their tour website. Meanwhile Grace contacted Rachel Pinkerton, Matthew West’s manager, via email. We are now waiting on a response. We also have ideas for a few of the other students including birthday parties, amusement parks, and arcades. Furthermore, we contacted Erin Amones working at the intermediate school to get involved with the special ed students there. We will meet with her soon to discuss. Lastly, we are working on expanding this project to orphanages. Therefore, we contacted Hands of Hope and met with Jim Peters. Jim explained many different opportunities for us to do within hands of hope and will be getting back to us soon on these opportunities. We will most likely work with the special ed students first and then the orphanages after. This project was created by Taylor Dickerson and Lauren Wiggins in 2016 and continued by Louis Holbrook and Hailee Holberton. These four students have impacted the lives of so many students over the years, including twelve students last year, and I hope to do the same. Grace Voelz, Victoria Crowder, and I have now decided to take on this life changing project this upcoming year. We chose Dream Day because of what Dream Day does for people, and I don’t think that can be described to those who aren’t a part of it. I was personally drawn towards this project because of my passion for those with disabilities. As a part of best buddies and unified track, I have always been involved with the special ed at New Palestine. Those with disabilities make my heart happy every day; therefore, my dream is to make their heart happy through this project. I hope to create a stronger relationship with recourse students through this project getting to know them on a deeper level. I pray that Dream Day will not only impact these students for a day but for a lifetime. My hopes are that these students will know that they always have a friend through Grace, Victoria, and I. Our goal is to show them that they are never alone.
Dream Day means giving joy to kids who make our school smile. Dream Day means supporting and recognizing a group of people who don’t get recognized. Dream Day means sharing a love for life that is unparalleled. Dream Day means laughing, experiencing, and learning. Dream Day means a day of fun for students, and a lifetime of hope for its organizers. It is about supporting and recognizing our fellow peers who don’t normally get recognition. Dream Day focuses on fulfilling the wishes of students with disabilities.
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AuthorAvery Biggs |