Big Apple Circus and National Therapy Center Embrace Autism

The National Therapy Center and Big Apple Circus are joining forces for a Big Autism Friendly Circus Event.

The circus event has been modified to accommodate individuals with autism and their families, with modifications to the sound and lighting. In addition, the site will also provide sensory and calming areas for individuals and their families.

There will be special guests for the show: Mallory Lewis and Lamb Chop will be the guest MC's. Mally (daughter of Shari Lewis) and Lamb Chop's performance resonates with audiences from toddlers to seniors, who grew up watching Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop on TV.

Mally's high energy is extremely well received and the nostalgic performance is filled with contemporary music, topical comedy and hilarious audience participation as well as vintage footage of Shari and Lamb Chop. For more information about Mallory Lewis, visit mallorylewisandlambchop.com

February 23, 2019 at 11:00 am and February 23, 2019 at 2:00 pm 238 Waterfront St, Oxen Hill, MD 20745

UNCOVERING ABILITIES WHILE CREATING A MORE INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY

STAND AND CHEER: Lemonade Leaders Owen Whitaker (center) and Henry Scruggs (right) offer lemonade to passersby to raise camp funds and awareness of children with special needs.

In a world where children are often separated by ability, it's time to shift the paradigm. At Extra Special People (ESP), we've made it our mission to offer kids with special needs the same opportunities that typical kids have: playing sports, participating on a swim team, enjoying after-school activities like cooking and dance, giving them the joys of camp and much more.

More than 400 families get to see their child come to life while they have the opportunity to play, engage with friends and be a part of a team. And while it is important to them, through my lens, I have seen that it is life-giving to our society as a whole. We are seeing that typical kids are learning life from kids with disabilities.

So, how do we integrate typical kids and their experiences with those with special needs? As with any other change in our culture, it takes time and intentionality. When spending time with kids with special needs, it does not take long to see beyond their disability to their ability. Places like ESP are changing the outlooks and perspectives of our participants and our community at large. How can we spread that contagious joy and acceptance to more people across our communities? Here is how we are doing it.

LEMONADE LEADERS

Lemonade Leaders grew from an opportunity we recognized in the community. Parents of typical kids under the age of 12 often come to ESP looking to instill values like volunteerism and compassion in their children. At the same time, the popularity of children hosting lemonade stands in support of local charities began surfacing on social media. Seeing the impact of these lemonade stands, and knowing we wanted to create a meaningful and educational experience for younger children, Lemonade Leaders came to life. Lemonade Leaders is a program for typical children ages eight to 11 who want to help send their friends with disabilities to camp by setting up lemonade stands benefiting ESP.

The kids participate in a four-part training program to learn about ability awareness, advocacy and service. The free program creates confident kids ready to run a lemonade stand for ESP. The Leaders create and promote their own stand and set their own goals, culminating their success by presenting their donation to ESP's campers at summer camp.

Each part of the training covers a different, relevant topic for the Leaders. They have learned about interacting with people with disabilities, and why ESP is important to the families who have children with special needs and desire emotional support. In part two, Leaders learned about using a mission and vision to fuel entrepreneurship, as well as how to market their stands, manage their donations and demonstrate strong servant leadership.

The fundraising done through Lemonade Leaders is an extension of ESP's year-round giving program, the ESP Fan Club. The Fan Club allows the community to support ESP's year-round programs like summer camp and after-school with a monthly contribution. All of the funds raised through the lemonade stands will contribute to the same mission. Lemonade Leaders who reach their goals will become honorary Fan Club members and receive a flag to share their advocacy. In their achievements, the hope is that they also cultivate a lifelong understanding and empathy for children with special needs. They get to know kids with disabilities for who they are on the inside – their abilities – rather than what may hold them back.

ESP has engaged more than 30 Lemonade Leaders in less than a year since its inception, and its Leaders have raised more than $7,000 collectively—but, their impact has extended far beyond the dollars raised.

A BIG HIT: In conjunction with its new national partnership with Miracle League, ESP is encouraging Little League teams to partner with teams with special needs and become Baseball Buddies.

BASEBALL BUDDIES

After ESP announced its goal to build the ESP Miracle League complex, a fully accessible baseball field, splash pad and playground, an extension of the Lemonade Leaders program naturally revealed itself. Next year, ESP aims to launch Baseball Buddies, an opportunity for local Little League teams to undergo similar ability awareness and advocacy training and fundraise for the future ESP Miracle League program. By providing the opportunity for typical baseball players to learn about the impact of creating accessible baseball to every kid, even those with disabilities, ESP aims once again to shift the mindset, deepen understanding and foster inclusivity amidst our youth.

JAVA JOY

Another program that integrates young adults with special needs in our community is Java Joy, a mobile coffee cart that local businesses hire to serve coffee and muffins inside their respective offices. Through Java Joy, our "Joyristas" are integrated into businesses everywhere of every kind, and their contagious joy is breaking down barriers every day. It is remarkable to see hardened or shy employees melt into smiles when greeted by a Joyrista delivering their morning joe! Owen and I recently met up with the Java Joy team at a local car dealership where they regularly serve. I wanted to get a few pictures of the Joyristas on the job, working their magic.

When there was finally a lull in customers craving their morning caffeine, I asked the Joyristas to gather around for a photo. To my surprise, Owen joined in the formation, positioning himself front and center in the photo-op. As I motioned for him to join me behind the camera, it hit me – Owen doesn't see a difference between himself and our Joyristas. To him, they're all a cohesive unit of friends that definitely belong in the same photo.

THE IMPACT

THE IMPACT In creating a more inclusive community, we see the impact of Lemonade Leaders, Baseball Buddies and Java Joy extending far beyond the walls of ESP. Multiple studies show that by educating children about individuals with disabilities at a young age, they become more accepting of differences throughout their entire life time and are more likely to form relationships with people with disabilities. Further, when youth are engaged in volunteerism at a young age, they are likely to continue this community involvement into adulthood and remain active citizens.

Our Lemonade Leaders and Baseball Buddies begin as volunteers and advocates for ESP and our participants, and we see them carrying this advocacy and acceptance throughout their lifetime. For typical kids, these friendships teach the importance of loving others who are different from themselves. For kids with disabilities, these friendships provide feelings of acceptance and normalcy. The bottom line is: every single child can benefit from friendship.

In the short term, these friendships benefit the children involved; in the long term, they stand to impact the world by changing our view on ability. ESP is committed to showcasing the delight instead of the disability as we create a world that embraces kids of all abilities, one moment at a time.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Laura Whitaker began as a volunteer at Extra Special People in 2003. With her passion for enhancing the lives of children with developmental disabilities and her specialized education in this field, Laura was selected as the Executive Director in 2006. As Executive Director, Laura uses her leadership and management strengths to manage staff, oversee year-round programs and summer camps and raise millions of dollars for the organization. Her favorite part of the job is getting to hug the many children who walk through the ESP doors. For more information, visit Extra Special People at extraspecialpeople.com