Adam, Audrey and Bianca: Our first day on the slopes turned out to not be on skis. The three of us headed to work at the logistical center. There we helped with tasks such as recycling, cleaning, putting away equipment, and even got to tour the different facilities of the BOEC. We also learned about all the other amazing opportunities that the BOEC has for people with special needs. Besides the winter program they also offer a summer program, which offers handicap accessible rope courses as well as biking and hiking trails. They also have amazing accessibility programs such as a rock-climbing wall that adjusts angles which allows people of all abilities climb. It was a great day because we really got an in-depth look into the program. We were able to help them in ways that they normally aren't helped. The coordinator who we worked with was extremely appreciative and thanks to being "Gumby" we had an awesome day.
Elliott: Today, I met a young child named Dutch. His competitive spirit truly shined when he challenged me to race down the slopes, and then he let me have it after he won. During the second half of the day, I followed behind a child in a bi-ski. Although he was unable to communicate, his smile shown across his face and made the day worthwhile.
Emma: Today I had the opportunity to ski with a young girl with Autism named Delaney. When I first introduced to her I was pretty worried about what was in store for me because she seemed very upset and uncooperative. However, the second we got her in her skis and on the snow she was having a blast. I was so surprised to see how well she did, and was even able to hold her hand as she skied beside me. Seeing her ski down a small slope successfully was an amazing feeling and left me excited for more.
Lauren: I was so lucky to be paired with a little boy named Rishi today. In the morning we went down four green runs (he was very persistent in doing exactly 4 and being back at exactly 11am) using a bamboo pull. Another instructor and I were on the outsides guiding Rishi who was in the middle. Right before lunch, Rishi got really upset riding on the ski lift so we had to go back early, but we got him back out on the bunny slopes in the afternoon. One of my favorite moments was when I was catching Rishi at the bottom of the hill to help him stop. He was going so fast that he knocked me over, but we were both laughing so hard! He may have had a few breakdowns, but overall it was an amazing way to start the week.
Jamie: I was matched up with a 14 year old girl named KayKay today and she is the coolest. She has an injury in the cervical portion of her spine from a car accident 8 years ago, which makes her a quadriplegic. She has been Bi-sit-skiing for the past 4 four winter seasons. This morning she tried mono-sit skiing for the first time and did amazing. By the end of two runs she was doing it almost completely by herself. In the afternoon she went back to bi-sit-skiing because her arms were tired. We rode down blues and blacks in the afternoon and she beat me in a downhill race by a long shot: basically she rocks at life. My job this week is to ride behind the instructor and client to act as a human shield while keeping an eye out for skiers coming behind us. They call us "Uphill Assistants".
Ryan: Today, I was lucky to be paired up with two participants today: Steve and Jade. Steve was 51 and was blind in his left eye as well as a lot of hearing problems. With his disabilities though, Steve is an avid adaptive skier. He rode in a bi-sit-ski. Jade, seven years old, was my other participant today. She has cerebral palsy and has some communication problems. In each of the participant's files, they have a goal that they want to accomplish. In Jades, all it said was "to go fast and laugh", which is exactly what we did.
Connor: I had an amazing experience today in Breckenridge with my instructor, Chris, and our student, Beth. Beth is a grown woman with MS and is paralyzed from the hips down. Although at first glance she looks like someone who cannot accomplish much, but in reality she can bi-ski by herself on many runs down the mountain. I watched her go down blacks with the help of Chris and it just amazed me. She is truly a remarkable person of how she doesn't allow anything to hold her back to being as independent as possible when overcoming this obstacle. I am grateful to have gotten to meet some like Beth and I couldn't be happier to be apart of helping her do what she loves.
Lindsey: My instructor Amanda and I had a blast working with our students Jessa and Luke. Neither student could communicate with us verbally, so we mainly communicated by smiling and high fives. The best part of the day was going down the blue slopes with Jessa, her father and Amanda because Jessa loved to go fast! While she couldn't communicate with words, her laughter could be heard from the top of the mountain. Today alone was extremely rewarding, and I can't wait to see what the rest of the week has to offer!
Sarah: On my first day of service, I worked with Claudio, a seventeen-year-old boy from Miami, Florida, who has Cerebral Palsy. He decided to do a four track on the slopes, which means he'd be using skis and arm riggers, making four ski tracks in the snow. Watching him speed down the mountain was an incredible experience and I cannot wait to see him again on Wednesday (my birthday!)
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