The people side of DI

My introduction to DI began last fall when my 6th grader called me after school to tell me he'd signed up for DI (for what?) and could I pick him up after school. I had no idea what we were in for at that time. It has been an incredible experience. I've enjoyed watching my son grow through the year, develop a new found self confidence, work through the challenges of being a team member, and develop a sense of humor ("I'm the top banana of the USDA, but you can call me Mr. Top Banana of the USDA" all while eating a banana and wearing a hat decorated with 3 plastic bananas during global competition). I'm really proud of the way the AMS Team A responded to glitches in their unidentified moving object competition. While they were very disappointed in their performance due to an equipment malfunction, they held it together in a very professional manner throughout their 8 minutes. The next day they came back for the instant challenge with very positive, can do attitudes rather than letting the previous day impact their next performance. They did a great job of representing themselves, AMS, and Iowa.

Words can't describe the global competition experience. Even with all the helpful hints from global experienced Moms, I wasn't prepared for 4 days of sensory overload and lack of sleep. You have to experience it yourself to really understand it. The eat, sleep, DI t-shirt posted on this site begins to touch on the experience. The best part of the event was the people side. We adopted the Maple Valley team when we learned their town of Mapleton had been hit by a tornado in April. We had the opportunity to meet the kids and watch them compete. They are an awesome group of kids and connected with our kids as if they'd been friends for a long time. I saw our own team members trade away prized pins to obtain a pin they knew was wanted by a teammate or parent. The joy of giving the pin to that person was more important than the pin they traded away. I saw adults in the pin trading tent give away a pin that they knew someone really wanted and didn't accept a pin in trade. Instead they asked that the person pay it forward by giving one of their pins to someone who didn't have very many pins. I had the opportunity to see huge smiles on a young boy and young girl who were recipients of those pay it forward pins. The kindness and generosity demonstrated will be remembered long after the global competition has concluded.

Thanks to everyone who supported these kids in their goal to participate in DI and to go to globals. These kids gained from the experience in many more ways than just competing at an international event.

Posted by Sabrina Swenson