Some of the teachers and students in attendance were previous beneficiaries of the club’s support, which includes a $500 grant that helps educators purchase equipment, curriculum, or anything else required for the classroom. According to Heeg, it was the 72nd year Springfield Rotary partnered with the university for the event.
“This is my 14th year doing this party, and through the years, there has been continual growth of individuals with disabilities, as well as an increase in the disabilities themselves,” Heeg said, highlighting how the rotary’s commitment has also grown with time.
The children arrived on school buses and were joined for lunch by Rotarians, teachers and specialists. After eating, Santa Claus appeared and guided the first of many groups of children to share the first of many gifts.
“When Santa gives them a gift, it’s not just generic. We go to the classrooms, and either the teacher asks the child or gets input from the parents,” Heeg said. “We ask that they give us three gift ideas in the $30-35 range so that when they open the gift, it’s really something they want. Some, when they open it, we see them tell Santa that it’s exactly what they wanted.”
Activities throughout the day were centered around multiple stations.
“All the stations are geared toward the children. Santa’s little helpers are therapy dogs. The Rockin Rudolph station is actually music therapy and Developmental Disabilities Clark County personnel taking care of that. Beanbag Snowman helps with dexterity and fine motor development. And then we have ice-fishing, which is just plain fun,” said Heeg.
As part of the rotary’s efforts to expand the event every year, 30% of the children hosted at this year’s party were non-speaking. Personalized visual rings were created to facilitate communication between them and their teachers as well as Rotarians.
“It’s an alternative way to be able to communicate with these children. Springfield Rotary strives very hard to make this the best event possible for the children and Rotarians,” Heeg said.
According to Rotary President Kerry Pedraza, the annual Christmas party is the culmination of months of hard-work and preparation.
“We come together in January and do a debrief of this event and start making plans for next year. We are so lucky that we have Bonita (Heeg),” Pedraza said. “She starts going at it full-in in September right after kids get back to school.”
This year included an even deeper collaboration with the Springfield City School District, Pedraza said. As part of those efforts, the district’s director of student services, Rachel Hill, offered key support to Rotarians to help them better understand the needs of the children.
“This event...just reminds you of how blessed the community is to have so many people connected and wanting to do something for others,” Pedraza said.
In addition to choke resistant prizes for some children, the Springfield Rotary Club also worked with career tech student-volunteers to make sure all dietary needs were respected. It was, according to Heeg, another way Rotarians could reassure parents that their children were being taken care of.
“For some of these children, this will be their only opportunity to have a holiday party, see Santa, even to get a gift. So, it just warms my heart to be able to be a part of this, to be associated with this,” said Heeg.
About the Author