One Great Idea CAN Make a Difference

One person can change the world. It’s a cliché everyone has heard time and time again. But I had never believed it, at least not until a recent Sunday. A year ago, I was presented with a task through the Diller Teen Fellows Program. Create a program that will have a positive impact in the lives of those around you. When I looked at what was missing from my community, I saw a need for all people to exercise in a meaningful way. Given my experiences working with differently-abled people, I saw a need for more support and understanding. With all this in mind, I created All-Star Abilities.

While I saw a community need, I also knew that I needed help. I turned to a community where I took ballet lessons, saw my brothers grow up, and had my first job—the Jewish Community Center. It was here that my idea became a reality. To be honest, it started out as kind of a mess; it was as if someone had spilled a milkshake. It seemed sticky and impractical but at the same time beautiful and pure.

My idea was always that, an idea… until one day it wasn’t. Even though I saw the entire process unfold in front of me, it didn’t seem real until we were all gathered together in our All-Star Abilities shirts, working together, smiling, connecting. Like you, I’ve always had ideas but this was the first time that a big idea became a reality. I have always been told that I am capable of changing the world. That one person can make a difference. On the first day of All-Star Abilities I learned how true these statements are. When I met the peer I would be working with my heart grew. I knew in that moment that this one person would make more of a difference in my life then I could ever hope to make in hers.