The Wrangler National Finals Rodeo is a ten-day championship event in December in Las Vegas. During it, real-life cowboys compete for the title of All-Around Cowboy Champion. The cowboys rope bulls, saddle them, barrel race, bull ride, and ride bareback.
One exciting tradition the contestants participate in is stopping by the Grant a Gift Autism Foundation. The Cowboys spend the day interacting with the kids, doing arts and crafts indoors, and guiding them in interactions with horses. This year’s visit proved to be extra special for one autistic five-year-old, King James, and his family.
According to reports, King James is a selective mute who doesn’t talk to anyone. During this year’s annual event, King was extra excited to participate. He was so excited to meet Tyler Wade, one of the Cowboys, that he actually talked throughout the whole day!
A few dozen children participated in the event, including Angelo Mayora who is a 16-year-old that’s attended the outreach Grant A Gift Cowboy event for six years. There was a two-year interruption in between these events due to Covid. When Mayora first started going to these events, he was 9 years old. He wasn’t very talkative, but the event always had him excited to attend. Now, he shows up each year and wants to be just like the Cowboys who changed his life.
According to some of this year’s cowboys in attendance, you just can’t understand how special the events are until you attend them yourself. One of the events staple cowboys, Tim O’Connell, attended the event this year despite not competing in the NFR, and he explained to news reporters that he’ll continue showing up to the event “till the end of time.”
Connection is Key
One primary reason this event is so successful every year is that it helps these autistic children build real connections through interactions with individuals they’re interested in. The kids also get to interact with horses in a safe way, with experienced professionals helping.
The children also get excited about the event, since it only happens once a year.
Are you interested in working towards building up your autistic child’s connections? Do you suspect that your child might be an undiagnosed autistic? If so, then our team here at the Nevada Autism Center can help.
We want to empower your child by first recognizing their unique strengths and challenges and then providing them with a customized care plan to help them thrive and grow. Throughout our treatment process, we’ll strive to help your child build the necessary social skills to build solid connections. We will also help your child work through and get rid of maladaptive coping mechanisms in favor of more pro-social and effective coping techniques.
Are you ready to get started? Schedule an assessment with our team now to learn more about our process and how we can help.
