A Report from “Give Kids The World” in Orlando, Florida

From: Mrs. Poulin and Ms. Bell, 7:36 AM

Hello!

It is our first “sleep in” since the day we left and I am the only one awake right now, so I figured I would write you all a quick note. Today is [actually] the start of our 5th day on Winterim (though for most of the group it feels like we’ve been here for “like a month already”) and it will be a “double shift” day. Give Kids The World asked us to do a “behind scenes” project of painting rocking chairs and then we have our regular shift tonight. Several of us will be volunteering at the “Winterwonderland Party” and the rest will be IN the “Winterwonderland Parade.” These are some of the best shifts to have and we promise to post lots of photos for you when we get another quiet moment such as this.

The next 4 days (No. 5 – No. 8) will be busy and mostly spent at GKTW, eating and sleeping. So last night we went to City Walk in Universal had a nice dinner and saw the “Blue Man Group” show… It was a perfectly placed activity to help them catch a break, bond, laugh and have fun.

This group is highly empathetic, so most of their work will be learning to process the many emotions that hit them when working with these families. We’ve told them everything they are feeling is “normal” and their growth will come from how they process through, accept that this reality is true for some people and they have the power to alter that reality for one moment by making joyful memories with them.