Did you know, over 50% of our grant recipients share that they were most excited to learn new skills?
This week, we’re excited to share a message we received from Alison, mom to twirling grant recipient, Jasmine, and the fun she’s having learning to twirl AND write in cursive!
Alison, Jasmine’s mom
“Jasmine ‘s sport is baton twirling and she is really getting good at it! Jasmine has received occupational therapy for years as she has never had strong gross and fine motor skills in her fingers and hands which has impacted her life in things such as writing, drawing, and hair care. I did not think she would do well in baton because of the finger and hand work needed, but I gave in to her pleas.I spoke with the coach and she felt that it might help with strengthening her hands and it certainly wouldn’t hurt anything.
“She is also quite shy and the team does performances, recitals, and parades. Additionally she has short term memory issues, everything needs to be repeated over and over for her to remember. All of this has impacted her educationally.
She started baton twirling and right away it pulled her out of her shell, performing at community outreach events didn’t bother her after the first time. She caught on to the routines fairly quickly and was able to remember them with little prompting, which was quite remarkable. But the biggest impact it has made in her life is her fingers and hands. They finally seemed to get better so much faster than years of OT had ever accomplished.
She has beautiful handwriting and is learning to write in cursive, cutting with scissors, painting, and braiding hair are now done with ease and no frustration. Baton twirling changed her life, for real! Her confidence has grown 10 fold and she has blossomed into a typical 8 year old. She loves to get up in front of crowds now and show what she can do. She takes her baton to school most days and practices during recess as well as showing her friends how to do it. She loves being in baton! I love it and it would not have been possible without this grant. While it does not cover all of it, it covers half of it which makes it affordable.
Thank you so much to all the donors out there, my daughter’s life has been changed so much for the better!”
Sports are awesome. They do so much more for us than just something to play. Don’t you think that every kid deserves the chance to play sports? The greatest impact you can have is to become a monthly donor!
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