Commnity Living Lifeskills Program

So, I think I mentioned a couple blogs  ago that I have started going to a Life Skills Program.  I think it's called the Community Living Program.  Two ladies started it up this year at one of the churches in town.  This program is for children with disabilities to get out the house, do some fun activities with peers, and learn some good life skills.  I have an aid in the summer,  Patti, that does stuff with me for 8 hours a week.  This program goes all year round though,  for an hour an a half every Wednesday .  Anyway, there are two ladies that run the program, and there are two more children besides me as well, both have Autism and the one boy has Cerebral Palsy like me, as well as Autism too. I know them both from school so that's nice  The two helpers, before the program started, went to every family and asked what each child's needs were and stuff they really like.  I liked that.  They really tried to get to know me and tried to make the program so we can do stuff that I would enjoy.  We started the actual program about a week or so after that.  There is a big garden outside the church, so our first big project was to plant  a  garden.  We went to our local  hardware store and bought some plants and seeds.  The next week we started planting.  Two of us are in wheelchairs so we got this raised garden beds that our chairs could roll up .  We thought that was a pretty efficient way to garden.  There is a big garden, like I said, but it's full of grass right now.  We're going to get someone to cut it down so we can go in their with our wheelchairs.  We are planning to make a big meal with some of the vegetables we grow, so were waiting to do that!  We just had the program again today and we made Strawberry Rhubarb muffins.  We have a big Rhubarb plant n the back that we made them with.  The Rhubarb plants are huge.  We got to pull them out of the ground.  That was a challenge! One stick of Rubarbone of the helpers and I found was huge, so we showed it off to everybody!  We had to make the muffins and clean up afterwards.  The two helpers are  great!  They're very patient and want us to do as much as we possibly can.  The other boy has to have a little bit more help with some things than I do, but they were really trying to get him to do a good deal of the work, witch was great!  There hasn't really been a program like this before.  It''s just another fun thing for us to do, and we get to spend time with some different people. 
It's really great  for me, especially in the summer and time  when there is no school because my parents work quite a bit and I don't always have something I can do when I'm home  so once again, this program always gives me something to do every week.  I'm  glad this program started up.  Our little town of Invermere doesn't have a lot of children with disabilities, so there aren't too many services.  It's great this has started up for us and will hopefully lead to more awareness of disabilities and to more programs starting up.  I hope it keeps going for a long time. This blog is a bit shorter than my blogs usually are but I just wanted to talk about the program, and promote it a bit.  We hope to do some fundraisers to raise money for different things we can do. 
The more services like this out there for people like us to have fun and learn along the way, thebetter!                                                                                                                                    

Operation Track Shoes

I just got back from my Operation Track Shoes  Adventure!  Myself, along with the Special O group that we went with all had an amazing time! I didn`t get to blog about every day because we slept in dorms and it would be difficult to blog in them and we were so busy we had very little down time. Writing this blog is going to be writing the Rick Hansen blog as it will be so difficult to put into words what the experience was like and what our  trip to Victoria was like Victoria in general.   First and foremost, let me explain what Operation Track Shoes is.  Operation Track Shoes is an annual track meet held at the University of Victoria.  It was designed for people with disabilities to be able to participate in competitive sports in a track meet, something that they wouldn't normally get to participate in.  It was pretty cool.  Every year in my middle school a track meet was held at the end of the year.  I didn`t get to participate in the sports.  I got to be the photographer which was awesome, but I did wonder what it would be like to do the sports.  In this track meet though, I got to participate in a bunch of sports, which meant a lot to me, as I`m sure it did to many of the participants.  For many, I`m sure it was the first time they`ve gotten a ribbon for competing in a sport.  I know it was for me.  This year is the 42nd year that Operation trackshoes has been going on.  That is incredible!  Okay so now, let me give you an overview of how our trip went.  The Special O group went as one of the many teams in Track shoes.  We all met in Cranbrook and flew to Vancouver and  then to Victoria.  It was a great group.  We all got along so well together and had an awesome time.  The airport staff treated me like royalty with my wheelchair as they would whisk myself and the group away to be the first ones on the planes.  It was pretty sweet!  When we got to Victoria, we did some touring and went to an awesome beach.  We met my cousin Stephanie who lives in Victoria and wanted to hook up with us!  She was incredible.  She spent so much time with us, helped us out as much as she could and  was the perfect hostess.  Everyone loved her!  She is a pretty special cousin!  Love ya Steph! So when we to the university, we had to wait a while.  It was really busy with all sorts of people with all different abilities.  It was pretty cool to see the variety of disabilities.  Our Coach, my friend Betty Jean,was busy running around getting everything  organized.  We stayed in real university dorms.  It was cool to get a feeling of what staying in a dorm was like.  My friend Aaliyah and I bunked together which was nice.  At dinner that night, we found out who our counsellors were.  Our parents were there the whole weekend but it was like a day camp.  The whole point of the councellors was to get to be a little more independent and make new friends.  We met our counsellors at dinner, Sarah and Lisa.  They were so nice and they were only teenagers.  Lisa was a year younger than me. They were very mature for their age  They were very special girls.  The first night was karaoke night.  People got to go up on stage and sing.  We sang Justin Bieber.  There was a huge line up and we waited for a long time but eventually we got to sing.  We sang loud and had a great time!  It was worth the wait.  We had fun!  All the nights were late nights, and we got up at 6:00 in the morning!  How does that work?  Ha ha. There was an opening ceremonies where each team murch down the stree with a banner and welcome Trackshoes in.  When our team came in the annoucer annouced that we hgad come all the way from Invermere.  Everyone was preety impressed that we flew there.  Ater the Opening Ceremoies, our events began.  Every moring  we would get up and have breakfast in the big dinning hall in the university.  We would get a card of all the events we would go in that day.  I'll just mention some of the events that I did that stand out.  First, there was some wheelchair games in the gym.  When you were in there you really got to see a variety of disabilities!  Some were pretty severe.  It was an eye opener for me of how lucky I am and also show  I'm not the only one out there with a disability.  When you live in a little town, there is not as many people, especially not as many in wheelchairs, so it's nice to see that you are not the only one.   There were some obstacle courses in the gym and also a big wheelchair race where my counsellors pushed me really fast.  All right, I'll admit it!  I'm not supposed to promote being in a wheelchair as lots of fun, but I did have quite a good time being pushed that fast in my chair.  It felt pretty thrilling!  Probably, the most exciting event I went in was the swimming race.  We did it in an Olympic size swimming pool!  We had to race from one side of the pool to the other.  We had a spotter with us to help us out.  It was a little tiring, but lots of fun, and I made it all the way to the  finish line, and so did my friend Aaliyah.  That was very exciting for us.  What we have learned in Special O swimming really payed off.  On the last night, there was a big banquet dinner and a dance.  I think we danced for like three hours.  I think it got to the point where I wanted to dance but was too tired to do any more.  We were party animals for sure! Before we left, there was a big closing ceremony that announced all the winners and said what a great time we all had.  Well, we had a very busy two days, but they were lots of fun.  Everybody's already talking about coming back next year.  Special O got a grant to come here so we hope to do a few fundraisers to raise money for next year.  We had a amazing time.  The counsellors were amazing.  They were so young but they were willing to help us out and make this trip fun for us.  Track shoes is another thing for disabled kids to believe they can do anything!  It was incredible.  Thank you to my counsellors, Special O and everyone who made this event possible.  We all had so much fun and can't wait to come back next year!  It was sad to leave Track shoes, but luckily a few of us in the Special O group got to stay an extra day in Victoria an extra day.  We got to spend lots of time with Steph, my cousin, which was  very nice.  We don't get to see her alot  of so it was awesome to spend some quality tine with her.  We got to go to Empress hotel, a very fancy hotel, for tea.  They have tea every afternoon at four so we go to sneak in for that.  I've been there before in Victoria years ago.  It was just splendid.  My mom, Steph and I felt like princesses sipping our tea.  We also got to go to a restaurant that Steph is helping out with called Noodle Box.  She is really excited about working in the restaurant and is hoping to work in a franchise in Calgary.  The food was awesome!  We didn't have any because we were just at the Empress, but our group said it was delicious!  We are really proud of Steph that she got this going.  Shes a go getter.  That is for sure!  Another cool thing we got to do was go to Fisherman's Warf and feed otters.  We bought some fish and we would swirled it just above the watwer and they would jump out of the water to get it.  |I was scared at first but I thought it was really cool!  You don't see that every day in Invermere.  The rest of the weekend we hung out a lot with steph and did some shopping.  We also hung out a lot with Betty Jean and her daughter Marlow.  We had an awesome weekend.  If we come back next year we might stay an extra day in Victoria before and after Track shoes.   It was nice to see U of Vic too and see if I want to go there for Post Secondary School.  It was just a awesome trip!  Special O wants me to make up a movie of our trip to show the people that funded us what a great time we had!  Thank you to everyone that made this trip happen.  For all the kids that went, it was a trip that showed them they can do anything  they set their minds too if they just believe!

Kate's Wall of Fame

I mentioned on this blog that I wanted to do more personal blogs, not just blogs about events  I get to do.  Now it seems to be that all I blog about is personal stuff.  ha ha.  Funny how things work that way.  It's kind of been a relaxing month of May with not much going on.  It's been sort of a nice break from always being on the run with events going on.  There will be more exciting things coming up though.  There is a new Life skills group that started up on Wednesday.  It helps kids with disabilities become more independent and active in the community.  That should be fun!  It only started on Wednesday and it was just an introduction to the group.  We start this Wednesday, so I might blog about that.  Also, this Friday  I get to go to Victoria.  The University of Victoria is holding something called Operation Track Shoes. It's like a mini Olympics for special needs kids.  They have simple things like ball throwing and stuff.  We don't know much about it but its supposed to be pretty fun so we are excited!  I hope to blog a lot about that!  Anyway, today, I would  like to blog about people in my life or people I have heard about that inspire me.  Being  disabled, I am very interested in learning about other people with disabilities and making connections out there.  These people keep me going.  I think if they went through or are going through, then I can get trough my challenges Also, people don't have to have disabilities or illnesses to be inspiring. Inspiring peopleare people  that persevere through thier challenges to get to where they want to go in life.  So, here are my top ten people that inspire me.

1.  Terry Fox-  I`ve talked about Terry Fox before in my blog when I wrote about the annual Terry Fox runs that I go to.  Terry has always inspired me.  Whenever Im on the Terry fox  run I always wish Terry was there running with me.  I wish I got to meet him and shake his hand and tell him how proud I am of him.  I got to see his parents carry the torch at the `Paralympic Opening Ceremonies.  I got so emotional over that!  It was amazing what he did.  I cant imagine being in that much pain and walking over the Canada.  Hs was amazing and had a big heart.  Whenever my disability frustrates me or I feel like giving up, I always think of Terry.  I think he probably wouldn't give up so I shouldn't either.  I really do hope they find the cure for cancer.  So many
 suffer from it.  Terry will always be my hero for his big heart and his amazing courage.  He was so much more than a fighter.  He was a champion.

2.  Rick Hanson-  Ive gotten to know Rick Hansen over the past few years, especially with the relay.  He is a lot like Terry Fox, persevering to reach a goal of making peoples lives easier.  Its like he kept up Terry's mission of healing others, except doing it for spinal cord injuries.  Doing the Rick Hansen Relay really brought me closer to him too.  I like how he changed his run this year from man in motion to many in motion.  It shows that he wants to make sure that everyone is getting involved and helping out, not just giving money to support a cause.  Rick also inspires me for being a disabled spouse and parent.  That's exactly what I want to work up to be.  Helping people, raising a family and never giving up.    Rick s the perfect role model for me!

3.  Helen Keller-  Helen Keller was a young girl who was deaf, blind and mute at the age of two.  Growing up in the 1800s, people knew very very little about disabled people and thought less of them.  Helens parents didn't know what to do with the girl.  She was throwing tantrums because she couldn't   communicate to tell them how she felt about things.  A couple years later, a teacher came into Helen life and not only tamed her spirits but taught her to speak through sign languag.e After many trials and tribulations, Helen could finally communicate.  Later  on, her along with  her teacher, Annie Sullivan, Helen  went on to university and even wrote a few books.  Helen is definitely on my wall of fame because once she discovered her true potential, she never wanted to stop trying new things.  She didn't let her challengers hold her back.  I love watching the movie The Miracle Worker, and at one time got so fixated about Helen that I got a book about her.  I had to learn as much as ipossibly could about her.  I hope to be just like her one day.  I want to persevere at my goals until all my dreams come true!

4. Grace Mariah Brulotte-  GRACE!  I have talked A LOT about Grace!   She likes her middle name a lot so I thought Id include it in her title!  Just for you Grace!  Grace was born with a condition called Arthrogrythoposi Multiplex Congeita, a condition that shortens her limbs.  She is confined to a wheelchair but she doesn't let that stop her.  She is the bubbliest person I know!  She'll amaze you with all the things she can do like knit and play piano.  She has organized a sit skiing organization where she lives all by herself.  She is a go getter and a great advocate for special needs, which is something I need to be more of.  Grace is my hero because of her go getem attituds and for being such an awesome person despite her challenges!  If you want to learn more about Grace check out her blog site http://www.disabledandlivingintherealworld.blogspot.com/        You'll be as amazed as I am with what she can do!

5.  War Veteran and Soilders- I don't believe in  going to war.. at all!  What does it solve?  Why do English teachers teach their students to debate when people just start fighting with weapons to get what they want!  It just doesn't make sense!  I am very proud of the men overseas though!  They must love their country.  They risk everything to keep peace for their country!  They are my hero's because they are very brave and must be really proud of their country to go to war for it.  I hope country find a different way to solve their problems though.  There is no need to loose lives just because two country are having a disagreement.  There just has to be a better way!

6. My family-  I have an amazing family!  Everyones so close to everybody.  They all try to pull people back up when they are down.  My family are my heroes because they are the most positive people I know.  They have an amazing sense of optimism.  I always have fun when I'm around them.  They are also my heroes because how they have coped with my disability.  They all try include me in every thing, and they never think to much about me as a disabled person.  I can do anything I want to they tell me. I am also proud of my parents deciding to have another baby after the complications with my birth.  After that they must have been pretty scared to go through another birth, but they did, and now I have an amazing little sister, Natalie.  I love my family so much.  They always seem to make my world a little brighter.

7.  Olivia Obrien-  Olivia goes to camp Winfield with me!  She has Cerebral Palsy but is quite severe.  She is quite limited.  She is also non verbal. Olivia is my hero because although she is in a wheelchair all day and has to have a helper with her all the time, she always has a smile on her face and always wants to be part of the action even if she cant participate.  Everyone at camp loves Olivia!  Shes quite the young lady.

8.  Aly Mahovlic- Aly was one of my best school friends.  A few years ago she moved to Alberta for a bit of a better life for her and her family.  Aly has a few struggle physically and health wise.  She has gone through a few extensive surgeries and have had some rough times.  Ever since she has moved away things tseem to be getting better for her.  She is now a model and an inspiration to lots of people.  Aly is my hero because of the way she has turned her life around and her positive outlook on the world.  Great work Aly!  I'm proud of you!

9. Little children-   Isn't it great to be little.  Unfortunately we all have to grow up so fast!  I wish I could be little again.  Life was so simple and fun and full of giggles and silliness.  As we get older, we sometimes forget the little important things in life that just seemed so important to us when we were a child.  We get so involved with adult life that we forget about these things!  Little children are my heroes because of their outlook on a world as so big and amazing,  their desire to play and their imaginations!  I never want to grow up!  NEVER!:)

10.  Special Olympic volunteers-  I've had so much fun in the Special Olympics this year.  It has really improved the social lives of  a lot of kids in our little town.  Its not just one or two people that out it on, it is a whole family which is really special.  They are my heroes because they have super big hearts and they really want to include all kids of all abilities.  They are really special  people that make the world a better place.  I`m proud to know them and proud to be a part of what they do in the valley.

I have so many heroes I can`t even count them all, but like I said, ten is my magic number so I put  down ten.  I have so many people that have touched my life, and I just hope that I have touch  theres.  `There are so many inspiring people out there!  I hope i can inspire people with this blog.  I think we all can try our best to inspire people.  Life is short.  Get out there and make a difference.  You`ll life will be that much richer for it!   Trust me!

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

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