Scottie Gaither passes on the baton
by Barbara
We returned on Sunday from an action packed five days in Orlando for the Easter Seals 2008 Convention. This trip was bittersweet for the Gaither family — it marked the time when Scottie passed the baton, so to speak, to the new child representative. Scottie and all of us have had such an amazing and exciting time this past year that it will be a little hard to give up. We have made the most precious friends and have had some truly wonderful experiences.
There are some very specific things I have learned this year as the mother of the Easter Seals 2008 National Child Representative:
- Scottie does not like to wear long sleeves or dress fancy (as he would say).
- He has become a very adept traveler and knows exactly what to expect at the security gate in airports.
- He is a very bright and funny young man that can rise to almost any occasion and never ceases to amaze me or his audience.
- He is autistic. In case I ever begin to forget, he finds gentle ways to remind me.
- He has been treated like a celebrity and in his mind has become one as well.
- He can go most anywhere and sit through most anything if he has his Nintendo DS or his PSP and a good video game.
The people at Easter Seals all over this country and beyond are the most amazing people I have had the honor to know. We have only scratched the surface of our mission as a family: to give back to Easter Seals, as they have given us so much. Easter Seals is changing lives on a daily basis for children like my precious son Scottie. Easter Seals truly does provide HELP, HOPE and ANSWERS!
We would like to thank everyone who is involved with — and who contributes to — Easter Seals for all the love, kindness and support you have shown us this year. As I said at the convention, our official time might be over, but we plan to remain friends of Easter Seals for many, many years to come. Blessings to you all.
Watch a video about Scottie and the Gaither family and see how you can give help and hope to children like him.
November 3rd, 2008 at 9:42 am
Barbara – many thanks for sharing Scottie and your entire family with Easter Seals. It has been a great pleasure to get to know you all over the course of this year, and to watch the celebrity in Scottie come out (It was clearly already there, right? It just needed a little push to come to the surface!).
To hear him share his experiences and travels with these crowds at the various events I’ve attended with you has been an honor, but to echo what Kristen said it is clear the support and love of his incredible family is what has given him the solid foundation he is building upon to this day. Here’s looking forward to seeing you all again soon – I better go and practice the Transformers game if I hope to keep up with Scottie and Shannon. A great big thank you from all of us, and please don’t be strangers!
October 31st, 2008 at 3:50 pm
Scottie, Barbara and the Gaither family- It has been such a great time this year getting to know you all. You have made countless new friends at Century 21 and Easter Seals. We could not have better representatives than your family to tell the Easter Seals story. We will see you again soon! Love, Patsy and all your pals at Easter Seals!
October 31st, 2008 at 10:23 am
Scottie and the entire Gaither family have been awesome respresentatives for Easter Seals. Thank you for a very successful year. I know all our national corporate sponsors were very taken by Scottie…as we all were! Barbara, you do such a wonderful job at the microphone.
October 31st, 2008 at 10:11 am
Thank you Scottie, Barbara, Shannon, Sarah and Carly! It’s been a wonderful year! Your Easter Seals friends up in Chicago have been so lucky to get to know the entire Gaither family and we really look forward to everything that’s still yet to come. We can’t let you get away that easy — we like you way too much!
Personally, it’s been incredible to see how much Scottie has progressed since we first met him in Washington, DC last October. Who knew he was such a charming little gentleman and chatter-box? I hope his travels, experiences and hard work with Easter Seals are a small part of that growth — but know it also has so much more to do with his amazing parents and big sisters. Thanks for letting us be a part of the Gaither family. You guys are the best!