Today I am grateful to you, Roger Sharpe, because tomorrow I will play pinball at a public location with a few other people, most notably with my son who has Down Syndrome. We will laugh and take turns, both playing and cheering each other on. We will share stories of our best games and worst stuck balls. We'll discuss upcoming pinball events and strategies for maximizing scores. But it's not just another day of fun for us.
We will use our hands to drop coins into the slot one at a time and our eyes and hands together to add the right number of players. I will watch my son use both hands together in a coordinated fashion to operate the flippers and control the ball as his eyes watch the every movement of that silver ball. I will hear him let us know that his next shot is the ramp or how he started multiball. I will see him in a different light, a competent young man who loves this game which motivates him to focus and remember beyond what is expected for a person with his disability.
We will celebrate his successes and console him in defeat. And he will do the same for other players, congratulating them on a ball well played or patting them on the back and saying "better luck next time." He will have a desperately needed moment to socialize with other people and bond over a game we all dearly love.
Maybe you weren't thinking about people like my son on that day in April when you played pinball for the NYC city council. I'm guessing you weren't. I'm guessing people like Robert Gagno, the number one player in Canada, who also happens to have Autism wasn't necessarily on your radar that day. But because of what you accomplished, pinball is now accessible to us all.
And that game of skill, not luck? Well it has surpassed our expectations more than you may know. It has provided so many things we all need in our daily lives. A place to belong. A common interest we can connect with and a conversation that unites us as more alike than different. Most importantly, it provides a focused activity we can enjoy and through our play develop valuable skills both socially and motorically that we can then utilize in our daily lives.
I know from reading your interviews and meeting your sons how important pinball has been to your family. I want you to know we too have bonded and celebrate this amazing game. Thank you for standing up for pinball. Thank you for making it possible for us to know the joy and valuable skills these machines have to offer. We're calling our own shots now and the outcomes are incredibly rewarding. Thank you for calling yours.
Cristin Gasson
Occupational Therapist
Ethan’s Mom
Ethan is one of inspirations for the Pinball EDU Foundation, a 501(c)3 charity with the mission to utilize the wonderful and unique game of Pinball for the social enrichment, skill development and education of kids and young adults.
For more information about Pinball EDU, please visit pinball4kids.org, email [email protected] to join their mailing list or find them on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pinballedu
Giulio
Pinside member
Milano
8y 32,550 158 3
This is a great piece of story. I just whish I was there with you guys, playing some balls with you, laughing and sharing jokes. Have a wonderful time...
Pinball EDU is a great idea. Amazing pinballs for amazing people like you.