Yes, they can

Recently, I had the chance to attend an amazing sports event.  It was not a pro or collegiate game, but a basketball clinic for kids with special needs of various kinds, including both cognitive and physical challenges.  Each child was paired with a high school aged “buddy” to be their personal coach for the two-hour session. 

At first, my entire focus was on the faces of the special needs children; how happy they were to be treated as equals by the older kids, and how proud they were made to feel as star players of their two-person teams.  But I realized, too, how fulfilling this experience was for the high school helpers, and what important lessons they were learning as they coached and encouraged their young all-stars.  They may have differed in size... but this day, all stood equally tall.

EVENT NOTES:  The iCan Hoop basketball project was founded by Julie Hagen, a mom who wanted her son Lucas to have a place to play and kids to play with.  iCan is now a part of the West Metro Miracle League.  For more information on the West Metro Miracle League, visit http://www.westmetromiracleleague.org/.  For more photos from the iCan Hoop event, click here.  And to see why we devoted this posting to their cause, click here.

© 2011 Mike Anderson.  All rights reserved.

The look of success

Each of us knows what it means to strive for success, but there is an even greater sense of accomplishment when we help others succeed.  When you help someone else accomplish something, you are rewarded by their achievement in ways that are difficult to describe; a sense of pride and joy that leaves you feeling both selfless and speechless.  Often, the experience begins with a young player looking up to their coach... and ends with the mentor in awe of their student.

EVENT NOTES:  The iCan Hoop basketball clinic on March 27, 2011.  The iCan Hoop league is designed to give kids with special needs a place to play the game.  It was founded by Julie Hagen, and is now a part of the West Metro Miracle League here in the Twin Cities.  


Visit http://www.westmetromiracleleague.org for more information.  


To see more pictures from this event, click here.  


And to see why we decided to write this blog posting about their cause, click here.

© 2011 Mike Anderson.  All rights reserved.