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Danielle Davis Shows good form while hitting the ball of the green.
Danielle Davis and Chris Gerrard cheer with their volunteers
Pictured (L to R) are John Bessinger, Mo (Arc Volunteer), Kurt Meyer (ETS), Robert Andrusynyk and Thomis Williams
On Monday, October 1st, the students from Kent Vocational Options a Community Based Occupational Training program (KVO/CBOT) enjoyed a wonderful day at Egypt Valley Country Club participation in Oktober Fest. This wonderful event, put on through the Arc of Kent County allowed these students with special needs from throughout Kent County to participate in four holes of golf, putting practice and a beautiful ride on a golf cart touring the courses. The day ended with a catered lunch in the ball room.
“This was the first time many of these students have experienced golf. The students were extremely excited and acted like pros themselves. I was proud of them” said Dawn Rhoades, an Employment Training Specialist (ETS) in the KVO Group 6 classroom. Some of the students in Dawn’s classroom can struggle with novel social situations. Opportunities like these provide students with the motivation and the chance to practice what they have learned in a real world situation. “It was nice to expose the students to a new experience. I’ve heard that it was such a success they are planning to repeat the event next year. What they need are more volunteers to assist with more students. We’ll be there if they do! You will notice that each of our students were prepared and wore kakis and collared shirts. This was something we discussed in preparation for the event; dressing appropriately for a given situation.”
“I thought it was wonderful. They taught us how to play golf. For lunch we had chicken, fries, green beans, a roll and lemonade. For desert, I had a cupcake. It was good. They drew names and passed out prizes. My friend Chris won a lunch pail” said Danielle Davis, a student in KVO/CBOT Group 6.
Barb Peay, the teacher in Group 6 said “It was an experience of a lifetime for them to be out and taking advantage of such a beautiful course on such a wonderful day. The kindness and generosity of the volunteers was so appreciated. This was all possible because of the thoughtful donations of a few individuals. The students were encouraged to try new things; I was impressed with how well they did. All of the volunteers were so understanding and helpful.”
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