A group of children from Glenville Elementary School in Greenwich soared to new heights on Mount Southington on Wednesday with the help of a local adaptive ski program.
For close to 30 years, the non-profit Leaps of Faith Adaptive Skiers has been helping kids and adults with disabilities participate in sports from snow skiing to hitting the water in the summer, giving them the tools to build their confidence.
“I think it’s a big deal for these kids who are not necessarily looked at the same way to have a sense of normalcy and do what a lot of other kids do,” LOF volunteer Alexandra Sportini said.
Glenville’s gym teacher, Deirdre Burke, organized the day. She is also a LOF volunteer.
“There’s nothing more I love than seeing my students excel, so to give them this opportunity to really build their confidence was kind of a no-brainer.”
Ramzi Si-Ahmed is one of Burke’s students. He has cerebral palsy and has worked with LOF a few times.
”It’s a very nice, kind thing of them to do…I just appreciate them helping me.”
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“I hope that they are learning that they can do absolutely anything and that there’s nothing holding them back,” Burke said.
