Tuesday Topics: NOAH’S BIG DREAM

Noah VanVooren

Noah leads his team in singing the school song

I know that we see many Youtube videos about sports heroes with Down syndrome, and they are always inspiring. But this one, about Noah VanVooren of Wisconsin, touched me in a way the others haven’t. I think it’s the love and outpouring of support from his team, the opposing team, and the community surrounding Noah that moved me. Noah clearly inspired this love.

Noah VanVooren of Little Chute High School in Wisconsin got to play in the last few minutes of his team’s game. He had been their water boy (or “Gatorade boy”) for all of his high school years, and he was a Senior now. He had never suited up until this night, and it was a night he and his parents will never forget.

Open-Heart Surgery

Many of our kids have the extraordinary ability to open others’ hearts in a way most of us just can’t, and Noah’s ability to do this is obvious on the screen. When my son Jonathan (DS, 28) was five and undergoing heart surgery, his dad Kelly observed, “Jonathan does open-heart surgery on everyone he meets.” I agree. So watch Noah VanVooren do the same to his teammates, his school, and his community…

Link: High school football team’s waterboy with Down Syndrome scores 35-yard touchdown

Link: Little Chute Victory Is Extra Special For VanVooren.

Wishing every one of us could inspire such love,