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By Lucy Mazzucco
Ottawa, Ontario -- May 2, 2012 -- There’s very little that's as rewarding as making children smile. Its even more rewarding when the kids in question are chronically ill or disabled. Ed Macdonald of Maritime Auto Salvage was one of the volunteers for the Sunshine Foundation’s recent DreamLift sponsored by the Ontario Automotive Recyclers Association and the Automotive Recyclers of Canada. After the event, he found himself asking, “Who had the reward, us or them?”
The DreamLift was a one-day, whirlwind adventure to the Magic Kingdom. The event was organized by the Sunshine Foundation of Canada and sponsored by ARC and OARA through vehicle retirement programs such as Car Heaven and Retire Your Ride.
DreamLift enables volunteers to contribute to the lives of disabled children by filling their day with smiles. This is one reason why the Ontario Automotive Recyclers Association (OARA) and Automotive Recyclers of Canada (ARC) were excited and eager to participate.
“I thought it was a great idea from the start. I personally love to help out as much as possible,” said Macdonald, who got the chance to spend the day with three kids. “One of the kids I spent the day with was named Tyler, who had lost both legs due to meningitis. The kids were always positive, it was their day and they honoured it.”
With such optimism from the volunteers that participated, it allowed for the children to gain as much as possible from the experience, allowing them to spend quality time together since parents were not invited to join. This gave the children an opportunity to have some independence for the day. “This was an ideal opportunity for people who had never had the chance to visit Disney World or had never been away from their parents. It was exciting for everyone, but it was not our day, it was their day,” said Macdonald.
Steve Fletcher, Managing Direct of ARC, was happy to participate and contribute to the event. “It was great to represent the auto recycling industry on the DreamLift. I was so proud that both OARA and ARC stepped up and agreed to sponsor this wonderful event. The impact on these kids and their families will last a lifetime,” said Fletcher. “There was also a huge impact on the auto recyclers who were involved.”
This is a statement that Mary Poirier of Valley Automotive would probably agree with. Poirier is the Treasurer of OARA and Secretary of ARC and had an emotional experience during her participation in the event.
“I was afraid I would spend most of the day in tears. It is a very touching moment for a mom of three,” said Poirier. “I’ve never participated in any of these events before and I’m hoping it will help me appreciate all the blessings I have in life.”
Poirier got to spend the day with a girl named Amanda, who had an iron deficiency and blood disorder who really enjoyed going on the “scary rides.”
“These kids have a rough road,” says Tom Huehn, from 400 Auto Wreckers. “I am a fortunate man. My kids and my family are healthy. This event teaches that it is important to see beyond the disability and the capability of these children, not what they are incapable of.”
During his participation in the event, Huehn got the chance to meet and spend time with a child named Jacob. For more on Huehn’s experience with Jacob, please click here. Although he had a very positive experience, Huehn mentioned he would not do it again.
"I wouldn’t want to take that opportunity away from somebody else,” he says. “The more people who experience this, the better off we will be.”
Carl-Antoine Gaudreault is the son of Brigitte Pesant, Director of Business Development for OARA. He has been anticipating the event since he signed up for it in March.
“I was thrilled to be a part of the April 2012 Sunshine DreamLift,” says Gaudreault, who got the chance to meet Wilson, a child whom he presented with his Sunshine Dream and would spend time with at Disney. “I applied for a volunteer position with the Sunshine Foundation because I wanted to help kids."
During the trip to Disney, Gaudreault got to spend the day with Christopher, a boy with muscular dystrophy. The two had a great time going on the rides together, Space Mountain in particular.
“He really liked rides,” says Gaudreault. “We went on Space Mountain twice, he really enjoyed it. It was fun to spend the day with him and he was really good around people.” Carl’s open-mind and excitement allowed for an extremely positive experience for both himself and the two boys, Wellington and Christopher, who he spent the day with at Disney.
“It was a great experience and great opportunity,” says Cathy Ferrell, from Modern Auto Parts. “Everyone enjoyed it and shared laughs together, especially on Splash Mountain. I had never been there before so it was overwhelming, but it was great being able to spend the day with the kids. It really was something special.”
Along with physically volunteering the time for these children, Tom Huehn organized a donation of 150 books from Scholastic Canada, in which each child was able to select up to two books of their choice. Denis Desjardin, from Sonshine Auto Parts, also further contributed to the charity. He organized backpacks for the children, which he ordered and filled with magazines, colouring books, sunglasses and more goodies. Desjardin then personally handed the backpacks out to the children and the remainder of the books that Huehn had ordered were donated to Sonshine Auto Parts to start a local literacy program for any children who visit.
The volunteers that participated in this event brought forth the optimism that these children needed and were able to lift their spirits in order to have a great day at Disney. Overall, the event was a success, and was able to provide the children as well as the volunteers with great memories and an unforgettable experience.
Gloria Mann from Canadian Auto Recyclers magazine was along as both a volunteer and a media representative. She says that it’s not enough to say that the event was a success.
“It wasn’t just a success, it was a HUGE success,” says Mann. “When you see what these kids are capable of, it’s simply inspirational. Their ability to keep smiling in the face of adversity makes everyone who meets them want to do better in their own life. Just meeting them makes you realize that even though a road may be long, there is a worthwhile destination at the end.”
For more the DreamLift program, please visit sunshine.ca.
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