Middle School Reaches Out at Special Needs Event
Special Love Ministries™ is a not-for-profit endeavor that sponsors and coordinates a monthly social outing for special needs adults and/or other mentally challenged young adults past high school age.
One Friday every month, Special Love Ministries™ hosts a themed dance, serves a catered meal, and provides music and entertainment free of charge to special need adults and their caregivers in the greater Lewisville area.
Recently, Liberty’s eighth grade football team and spirit team attended this event. The football team signed footballs for the special needs participants and the spirit team performed.
“Our kids were absolutely fantastic,” said Matt Bowles, Middle School youth pastor. “Our kids danced, talked, hugged, and laughed with their new special needs friends.”
Parent Lauren Mackenzie had reached out to Bowles last year, asking if Liberty could participate in one of these dances. Mackenzie has an eighth grade son at Liberty who plays football and has a special needs daughter.
Her request became reality last month as the football and spirit team, in uniform, took a chartered bus together from Liberty to the Lewisville Senior Center.
“Lauren’s son, Spencer, wanted to talk to everyone on the bus on the way, so I gave him the mic,” Bowles said. “He encouraged our team to engage these people and to just love on them.
“You could tell Spencer has a heart for this ministry — what a great kid,” Bowles said.
DanzTeam and Spirit Team Director Julie Price also attended and said, “We were there to lift these people up and bring happiness, yet we walked away feeling the same thing — they lifted us up and made us feel special.”
Bowles went on to say that he had never been as touched as he was when he saw how the Liberty students poured their hearts out to the participants at this event