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Submitted photo – Two of the guests of honor at Night to Shine hit the dance floor to bust their moves.
It was a night to remember for 90 individuals with special needs who were honored and given a “Night to Shine” in Palatka.
Sponsored by the Tim Tebow Foundation, Night to Shine Palatka on Friday was the first of its kind locally. It was hosted by First Baptist Church of Palatka and Calvary Missionary Baptist Church, with doors opening at 5:30 p.m.
The evening started out with honorees, ages 14 and older, arriving by limousines provided by Karl N. Flagg Serenity Memorial and classic cars owned by area residents. There were also wheelchair-accessible vans so each guest could experience a royal, red-carpet event, according to event Chairwoman Christa Smith, who also serves as disability ministry manager for the Tim Tebow Foundation.
After arriving, honorees were escorted to a 125-foot red carpet lined with lights and cheering paparazzi, which led to a fully transformed ballroom, where dinner was served. The dance floor and karaoke room were opened at 6:45 p.m., where guests danced and sang the night away.
“The feedback we have received from families in attendance was overwhelmingly positive,” said Smith, whose husband is Ron Smith, pastor of First Baptist Church of Palatka. “Tears flowed as their loved ones exited limos and the cars onto the red carpet and later in the evening as they were crowned kings and queens of the prom.”
She said her husband and Pastor J. Johnson of Calvary Missionary Baptist Church partnered for the past year to provide disability inclusion training to their churches in preparation for Friday’s event.
This year’s Night to Shine was the 10th anniversary of the Tim Tebow Foundation.
“As a first-year church, we received a generous grant from the Tim Tebow Foundation,” Smith said. “In addition, we had an overwhelming response from volunteers at each of our churches and it was amazing. We worked all year to plan this event together for Palatka.”
Besides each being crowned during the event, honorees were also treated to other highlights by the 482 volunteers who helped with registration, hair, makeup, shoe shines and bow ties, among other services. Flowers Galore & More provided prom dresses, corsages and boutonnieres for those who needed them.
Parents and caregivers were provided a catered meal, dessert, a coffee bar, gifts, door prizes and chair massages. The evening ended at 9 p.m. after a video message from Tim and Demi Tebow following the crowning ceremony.
Since Night to Shine’s inception in 2014, it has impacted more than 1,000 cities across 56 countries around the world to give more than 555,000 honored guests a prom experience, according to timtebowfoundation.org.
“My hope is for every person with special needs to be celebrated, to know they’re loved and to know their true identity as a child of God,” Tim Tebow said on the website. “We have a big job to do that will not be finished until all are celebrated, until all are loved and until all know their true identity as God’s royalty.”
Kathy Wright, who co-chaired the event with Mia Taylor, said it was an amazing time to celebrate God’s love for a population of individuals who are oftentimes overlooked.
“To see the bright smiles and laughter as each of them came through the doors was such a blessing to me and so many others who shared in this awesome Night to Shine,” she said. “Night to Shine was a beautiful night loving on God’s most valuable people and their families filled with smiles, laughter, dancing and singing.”
Smith knows Night to Shine Palatka will be an annual event. It is something special to her because her son, Ryan, is deaf.
“Ryan was voted prom king of his high school,” she said. “He had an amazing group of peers that loved him and honored him by pulling together to vote for him. It was an amazing experience. Now, we get to see others experience honor and value through Night to Shine Palatka.”
According to Smith, the support from Palatka businesses, organizations and people was nothing short of miraculous, including the grant received from The Frank V. Oliver Endowment.
“We also had over 50 Palatka businesses and individuals contribute financially through our gold, silver and bronze sponsorship levels, in-kind donations and by providing services,” Smith said.
Those services included the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, which provided all the security at no charge for the event, with Detective Dan Taylor serving as head of security.
“We could not have done any of this without the outpouring of support from our churches and community,” Smith said.
Stacy Hodge’s daughter, Savannah, and son, Alexander, attended Night to Shine Palatka, where Savannah was honored.
Savannah Hodge, 21, said she had so much fun and wants to do it again.
The honoree’s mother said it was wonderful seeing her daughter’s excitement about getting dressed up and all the attention.
“It was so heart-warming watching all the attendees soaking up all the attention and looking so beautiful and handsome,” Stacy Hodge said. “My heart was so full that they had a night to shine and have fun. It was also nice to have the parent’s room to talk to other parents and have some time to relax knowing my children were in a safe environment, and I loved being able to go interact with them whenever I wanted to.”
Stacy Hodge said the event meant the world to her because Savannah always watches her sister get ready for dances and gets jealous.
“Night to Shine was her night and all about her,” she said.
