Special Friends Day 2012

For the third year in a row, I have volunteered for Special Friends Day at my college, even though I am now a graduate. While Special Friends Day of 2011 held many eye opening interactions with children with special needs, I feel as if I am more inspired and motivated by these children as each year passes. This year, my friend, Mel, who has volunteered with me for the past two years decided to join me once again! We were paired with an adolescent boy this year, instead of an adolescent girl, like we have had for the last two years. We were nervous, and weren't sure what to expect.

During the meeting, we received our paperwork, and noticed that there would be a male volunteer that would join us, and suddenly we felt better about bathroom trips and any other problems that could arise. When we got out of the meeting, we immediately called our special friend's mom, and had a great conversation with her about the day and what we could do to help her son have the best day ever! Mel and I went out to dinner afterwards to catch up and talk further about the upcoming Special Friends Day.

When the day came, we got our shirts to wear, and patiently waited for our special friend to arrive. My anxiety was high because I just wanted the day to start! When we finally did meet our Special Friend, I was more than excited to lead him around the gym and make it the best day ever. The theme this year was Candyland, so we immediately took a picture with the King of Candyland. Afterwards, we did everything from dancing, bouncing around in the ball pit, jumping in the bounce house, doing crafts, and eating lots of pizza, cotton candy, and popcorn! We were told to keep him away from the TV/movie room, so we made sure that he was moving and always smiling! When he didn't want to do something anymore, we moved on! The day ended rather quickly, too quickly if you ask me, and before we knew it our special friend was headed home with his cousin.

I immediately emailed our special friend's mom telling her what he did in detail, including his meet up with a girl from school, who might just have a little crush on him! His mom was so thankful, especially for the pictures that I included, because her son isn't able to talk much and tell her about his day, so she was grateful for the pictures and my detailed email. She said this year the day was run much better than last year and that it was much more organized. Her email made me smile, because even though I knew my special friend had a great time, it was great to see how much it meant to his mom, as well.

Volunteering is something I try to do as often as I can, because I am fortunate enough that I can volunteer, whether it's with Make-A-Wish, volunteering at the hospital, or days like Special Friends Day. I love interacting with children especially, not only because my career goal is to become a Child Life Specialist and it's great to get more experience, but because these children whether they are sick or have special needs, they're still children and they deserve all the laughs and smiles in the world too.