The "Ike Special"

One day this week, a teacher shared a news story with me about Ike Ditzenberger (thanks, Brad), a 17-year old football player who dreams of playing college football. He attends daily practices and toils away in offensive drills with his Snohomish HS teammates. Ike could represent thousands of young athletes, but he doesn’t: Ike Ditzenberger has Down Syndrome.

Ike achieved a major milestone last Friday in a game as he ran for a 51 yard touchdown with 10 seconds remaining. The “Ike Special” provided the only points in Snohomish’s 35-6 loss. It was Ike’s first varsity touchdown, a ramble through an opposing defense that mirrors the end to Snohomish practices every day, when he gets the final run of practice and somehow finds the end zone, through a combination of running guile and intentionally passive defenders.

I was certainly touched by this sentimental moment for this young athlete; however, it was the other players on the field that struck me. They created a moment for this young man that will be with him forever. It was evident from the news video that Ike’s teammates cared about him; lifting him into the air after the touchdown. It was just as evident that the other team cared for this young man, too, as they intentionally missed diving tackles and feigned being blocked, all this to create a special moment for Ike. These young men knew and understood what it meant to be empathetic, compassionate, and caring.

As I watched this news story I felt wonderful warmth in this event, which made our recent 4th-6th grade assembly on Thursday that much more meaningful for me. For those of you who couldn’t attend, we had Chris Burke and the DeMasi Brothers perform many wonderful skits and musical numbers, sponsored by the Down Syndrome Society. Many of you probably remember Chris Burke as “Corky” from Life Goes On. Chris’ message was that of perseverance and setting goals. He believes that Down Syndrome should be called Up Syndrome and that people should concentrate on what they can do instead of their limitations. It was an inspirational assembly and I was impressed with how our students enjoyed and “got into” the presentation.

As I clapped, sang, and signed along to the music (I found out I sing better in sign language) I realized how fortunate we are to have students with special needs here at AAK. I don’t mean to sound facetious, but as Chris Burke mentioned in his performance, he wasn’t allowed to go to public school as a child. It’s one thing that many students like Chris Burke have the chance for an education, but it’s just as wonderful that our general education students have this tremendous opportunity that many of us didn’t have. They’re learning all the traits demonstrated by Ike’s teammates; empathy, compassion, and caring. Acceptance is a gift that we give to others as well as ourselves.

I was impressed with Chris Burke’s abilities. I was touched by the news story of Ike. I’m also glad that our students have the opportunity to learn about others who may be different. Celebrating diversity means so much more to me today.

I hope you have a fantastic weekend.