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Churches around the world hosted extraordinary prom night experiences for people with special needs Friday night.
"It's a dream come true to see so many people come together from around the world to experience this one night, and to see each face reflect the love of Christ in their joyful smiles and beautiful spirits," retired Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow tweeted Friday during one of the events.
\u201cIt's a dream come true to see so many come together around the world to experience Night to Shine on this one night & to see each face reflect the love of Christ in their joyful smiles & beautiful spirits.\n\nSo thankful to have a front row seat & watch God at work, truly humbling!\u201d— Tim Tebow (@Tim Tebow) 1676039631
More than 600 churches in 46 countries offered Night to Shine events, Miss Universe and Miss South Africa 2017, Demi-Leigh Tebow, tweeted on the eve of the big night. Demi-Leigh Tebow is Tim Tebow's wife.
For the first time since 2020, Night to Shine was held in person this year, to the delight of all. Distanced celebrations were held during the COVID pandemic.
Participants who were unable to attend Night to Shine in person were able to experience the event virtually.
"We still feel in person is best, but there are those like my own son, where right now in their life, going to an in-person event where it's really loud and really big, really bright with lots of people is an impossibility," said Ellen Gardner, mom of a Night to Shine King and TTF Shine On Manager.
\u201cThere is still time to be a part of the #NightToShine Virtual Celebration! Visit https://t.co/0sMOghfqDQ to learn more!\u201d— Tim Tebow Foundation (@Tim Tebow Foundation) 1675997100
"COVID can cancel a lot of things, but it can't cancel worth and value and love for people," first underclassman Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow said when announcing 2023's event.
Night to Shine 2023 is BACK IN PERSON! youtu.be
"Seeing the faces of thousands of Kings and Queens light up as they are loved and celebrated…knowing each one of them is being shown the truth that they are significant, valuable, and loved…I can't help but be emotional," Tebow said in a tweet.
Night to Shine is a complimentary event sponsored by local churches worldwide, according to the Tim Tebow Foundation. The prom-like events for people aged 14 and older with special needs include red carpet entrances, limousine rides, catered dinners, a respite room for parents and caregivers, and a crowning ceremony where each guest receives a crown or tiara.
Night to Shine is a project of the Tim Tebow Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charity. The organization's mission is "to bring faith, hope and love to those needing a brighter day in their darkest hour of need." It is part of the organization's larger special needs ministry.
The Foundation's other projects include anti-human trafficking efforts, orphan care, and providing physical and spiritual care for children with profound medical needs,
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'We share a very special friendship': Aussie football captain and water boy with special needs celebrate together after title win
The Geelong Cats, who just clinched the 2022 Australian Football League premiership title, are winners both on and off the field, and for proof, we need only watch a sweet clip taken following their premiership victory last week.
On Saturday, the Cats routed the Sydney Swans 133-52 in the AFL Grand Final, capping off a 16-game winning streak in front of nearly 100,000 boisterous fans. Following the victory, team captain Joel Selwood, 34, found team water boy, Sam Moorfoot, 29, in the crowd and brought him onto the field to celebrate with the rest of the Cats.
Moorfoot — who has worked at GMHBA Stadium, where the Cats play their home games, since 2015 and who happens to have Down syndrome — was only too eager to join all of his friends.
\u201cSammy\u2019s moment \ud83e\udd79\n\n#AFLGF\u201d— AFL (@AFL) 1664015764
Selwood helped Moorfoot climb over the barrier to the field. Then, as someone yelled, "Put it on," No. 5 Jeremy Cameron placed his premiership medal around Moorfoot's neck.
"What a moment," Moorfoot said. "I’m very proud of my boys to win a premiership.
"Joel said he wanted to get me on the ground. That was the moment of my life, what an honour."
"I think Joel is amazing," Moorfoot added. "A great role model but also a little bit cheeky. He treats me like a brother and always looks out for me."
Selwood also discussed the special bond he shares with Moorfoot.
"We share a very special friendship, and I consider him like family," said Selwood, who, in addition to captain, also acts as the AFL’s Disability Inclusion Ambassador. "He has my back and I have his."
Meanwhile, Moorfoot, who plays on the Geelong Dragons of the Football Integration Development Association, had an important game of his own recently. He and the rest of the Dragons faced off against the Kananook Bulls in the FIDA grand final, but fell short, 106-51.
Moorfoot said he couldn't be happier for his friends on the Cats though.
"There isn’t one player at Geelong that isn’t kind and supportive. They are all my mates."
Selwood also kicked off the AFL Grand Final by entering the field with Levi Ablett, the son of AFL and Geelong legend Gary Ablett Jr, in his arms. Levi has a rare degenerative disorder.
It is rumored that Selwood, who has been playing for Geelong for 15 years, may soon retire.
H/T: Goodable
Small-town Texas restaurant gives adults with special needs the opportunity to learn job skills, independent living
A small town restaurant in Texas is making a big difference in the lives of an underserved community: those with special needs.
Beneventi’s Italian restaurant in Mingus, Texas, located about two hours west of Dallas, offers adults with special needs the opportunity to spend some time away from home and learn important job and life skills that may help them transition into independent living.
Jan Underwood, owner of Beneventi's, established the Each & Everyone Foundation in 2010 after she saw the positive impact that vocational training had on her son, Austin. Austin, who has Downs syndrome, received a high school diploma in Texas but couldn't find a program in the state that would help him learn job skills since he struggles with reading and math. However, thanks to a program at Eastern New Mexico University, Austin was able to earn a "vocational degree" in just a year.
And he has put what he has learned to good use. Austin is the proud owner of his own hot dog food truck called Austin's Underdawgs, which has already sold about 50,000 hot dogs, according to Austin's estimates. Austin also owns his own home in Fort Worth.
His mother, meanwhile, has used her experience helping Austin gain his independence to help other adults with "learning differences" do the same. After applying through the Mingus Job Accelerator, participants travel to Mingus to learn how to perform some of the necessary tasks of the food service industry.
"We bring them in, just like any other employee, and we just train them," Underwood recently told Fox News.
"We refuse to compromise on quality in our restaurant," Beneventi's boasts on its website, indicating that program participants are held to high standards like all other employees.
In addition to job skills, program participants also learn independent living. They stay in their own private tiny house during their training, which lasts from one to four weeks. They receive pay for up to four hours of work each day they train.
The cost of the program is $700/week and includes all meals, though trainees are encouraged to practice preparing their own meals in the restaurant kitchen as well.
"I think people with special needs need to learn how to be just like me," said Austin, who introduced Rachel Campos-Duffy and the Fox News audience to his girlfriend, Jenny Stone.
"She makes my heart really nice," Austin said of Jenny. "She's the one for me."
"We're kind of like ... a celebrity couple," Jenny agreed.
Watch the latest video at foxnews.com
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Democrats have for the past decade placed the needs of able-bodied adults ahead of individuals with disabilities like Chase Brown.Video: Dad gets in massive brawl with students on high school campus. Conflicts between students and his sons apparently sparked it.
A father was involved in a massive brawl with students on an Arizona high school campus earlier this week, after which the dad and a student were arrested. Much of the melee was caught on video, and conflicting stories about what led to the brawl have arisen.
What are the details?
Willie Smith, 40, was called Tuesday to Tucson High School to pick up his two sons, who were being sent home following an incident with another group of students, KOLD-TV reported, citing the interim complaint.
School staff and safety officers told Smith he and his sons should leave through a rear exit instead of through campus to avoid a confrontation, KOLD said, citing the document.
But Smith said he didn’t feel they needed to do that since school staff didn't tell him his sons had done anything wrong to be sent home, the station said, citing the complaint.
In addition, Smith allegedly told staff if the ongoing issue wasn't addressed, there would be a problem, the station reported. The document indicated that Smith said, “If it’s going down, it’s going down here,” KOLD reported, adding that officers said Smith was referring to his sons protecting themselves if they were provoked.
Smith then took his sons through the courtyard during lunch, the station reported.
Dad in 'mutual combat with a student'
While Smith and his sons walked through the courtyard, there was an exchange between students and Smith’s sons, and a fight broke out, KOLD said, citing the document, which also said Smith engaged in “mutual combat with a student.”
Smith admitted to fighting with the student and claimed the student was assaulting his son, the station said, citing the complaint.
KOLD said video and witness statements couldn't confirm who threw the first punch.
Tucson High footage pt. 2 pic.twitter.com/A7LsIWuZ4S— TMZ Tucson (@TMZ Tucson) 1651615205
Smith was arrested on a felony charge of disrupting an educational institute, Tucson police said, according to the station.
Police added to the station that a 15-year-old boy is facing a charge of disorderly conduct-fighting.
Tucson Unified School District told KVOA-TV that at least 14 students were involved in the fight and may face discipline. The station added that Smith also was charged with aggravated assault.
Smith's sister speaks out
Rosalina Martinez — Smith's sister — told KPNX-TV that one of Smith's sons has special needs, the other son was defending him, and that both of them have been bullied by the other students for about a month.
“When [my brother] was supposed to leave the campus, they asked him if he could go around the block to get to his car because [there] were attempted attacks toward his kids,” Martinez told KPNX. “So my brother said, ‘Why do I have to go around? My car is right there. I’m not a criminal. I’m not doing nothing wrong.’”
She told the station that when her brother and his sons walked out to their cars, the students attacked them.
“He’s just pushing them off him," Martinez added to KPNX. "You can see in the videos that he’s pulled down, from his shirt to the ground. Then you can see a bunch of children — because they are children — [with] closed fists hitting him in his head, kicking him in his body when he’s on the [ground]. When he’s trying to get up, that’s when they take that picture that shows that he has his arm on this kid’s neck. In reality, what he’s trying to do, is get up, and that’s when they take the picture.”
She added to the station that her brother "never hits anybody, all he is doing is protecting his kids from being attacked."
“This shouldn’t have happened,” Martinez also told KPNX. “The staff knew that there were plans of other people attacking them; they should have escorted him to safety.”
Video shows at least 30 students involved in fight at Tucson High Schoolyoutu.be
Superintendent blames the father
Gabriel Trujillo, the district's superintendent, told KVOA that Smith started the fight and is to blame.
"We are not going to stand for parents coming onto campus and putting hands on kids," Trujillo added to the station.
Trujillo also said Smith "took it upon himself to charge out, in an unauthorized fashion, out into the courtyard and physically attack one of other students. This is what triggered a chain reaction of other fights as two factions of students began to square off against themselves, each other and certainly this parent," KVOA reported.
The superintendent added to the station, "I hold this parent responsible for the level of violence we saw ..."
In addition, Trujillo told KOLD-TV in a subsequent story that there was a conflict between two students on Monday, which social media posts that evening.
“The conflict with [the] two students is a relationship with a significant other who had relationships with both students,” Trujillo told the station, adding that the conflict escalated Tuesday morning, after which school staff isolated the two students and called their parents to pick them up.
“Classic tale of two young men passionate, enraged, jealous, going after each other over the affections of someone else,” Trujillo added to KOLD.
At least 14 students may face suspension after man, 15-year-old charged in Tucson High fightyoutu.be
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