Carnival Games for Down Syndrome Guild of KC

The Down Syndrome Guild of Kansas City (DSG) holds several annual events in which family, friends, and volunteers of the organization come together for an afternoon of fun and games. For each event, DSG rents several carnival games from a local supplier. Each game costs about one hundred dollars to rent each time. Over a couple years, it adds up! We found to be the perfect opportunity for Burns & Mac and Spaces to apply our skills to help DSG in a creative way. DSG already had the resources put aside for this project so our team did not have to spend a dime. Additionally, we knew that February's theme of "Change Without $Change$” was not so much about things as much as people. We decided to work with the DSG STARS (Special Teens Achieving Real Success) in deciding what games to build, and how to build them. Hanging out with the DSG STARS, getting paint everywhere, and dancing to some Jonas Brothers, was truly a treat (and entertaining) for all involved.

Over January and February, we met with STARS three times. Our first meeting was an ice breaker in which we went through introductions (you work at McDonald’s??!!) and held a friendly competition of building the tallest possible tower out of toothpicks and marshmallows. DSG is always looking for ways to expose STARS teens to different careers and so this small contest was a great way to show them some things that engineers do. We then brainstormed as a group to decide which of their favorite carnival games we were to build. We decided on Bucket Toss, Washers, Prize Wheel, and Sucker Tree. At our second meeting, we utilized donated painting to let the teens apply some artistic flair to each masterpiece. We also had time to play board games when the work was complete. During our third and final event, we tested out the games by playing them and giving out prizes. Everyone was a winner! Perhaps the most memorable part of the meeting was dancing the night away with STARS to the Hannah Montana soundtrack.

Working with STARS and DSG was fun, educational, and inspirational for us as volunteers. Prior to these events, few of us understood what Down syndrome really was, and how it affects people’s behavior. After spending some quality time with STARS, it is easy to see that each individual with Down syndrome has his or her own strong personality, and will say the darnedest things as any teenager will. A DSG volunteer coordinator pointed out that she had never seen some of the STARS teens as animated as when they were interacting with us. It’s great to know that we made a last impression on some of the teens we worked with. And although we left DSG with some (hopefully) long lasting carnival games, we took away experiences that are even more valuable. DSG has already expressed interest in working with our group in the future. We hope to find some volunteers on the BMcD/Spaces team that would like to continue with future volunteer activities with DSG.