Have you ever done something you thought you’d never get the chance to do? Maybe it’s going on an exotic vacation. Maybe it’s something adventurous like skydiving or swimming with sharks. Maybe it’s meeting a favorite celebrity. Whatever it may be, the feeling after doing or experiencing it is often indescribable. These once-in-a-lifetime opportunities make us feel special, and, in many cases, are things or events that boost our overall confidence. Not everyone gets once-in-a-lifetime opportunities which is why when they arise, people often feel the need to do whatever it takes to make it happen either for themselves or others. While, in some cases, these unique opportunities happen by chance, often they are earned as a reward for something that an individual or group has done.

I first was invited to a reception at the Governor’s Mansion (Residence—as we learned that he prefers to call it) when a colleague mentioned it at the bottom of the email the second week in May. Not giving it much thought because I knew we had other things planned for the day it was (I was scheduled to do some disability awareness presentations at an elementary school), I forwarded the email to my mom saying, “I don’t think we can swing this.” She emailed me back saying that we definitely could and should make it work. I emailed my colleague back asking for more information about the event. A few days later, I received a link to register for the event. At that point, I began contacting workers and rearranging my schedule. I schedule a month in advance, so I always feel horrible when I have to cancel shifts on people. Fortunately, after explaining what was happening, both workers it affected were very understanding and encouraged me to go. After talking to both of them and making sure it was okay, I registered mom and I. On the registration form, it asked if I needed any accommodations. Not really sure what to expect, I just put “wheelchair accessibility” figuring that’d cover all the bases. The next day, I received an email from the events director asking if it’d be helpful to have closer parking. I replied that that would be great and she sent me directions and a map showing where we should park.

As time went on, I heard about more and more people I knew going, so I was pretty excited. The day of the event was a little crazy. My mom picked me up in Oshkosh and took me to the school in North Fondy to do the first presentation. After that, we quickly went to my parents’ house so I could use the restroom and eat a little something. Then, we went back out to the school and did the second presentation. We left from there to go to Madison. We had never been there before so we had no idea what to expect. We were a little early, so we sat in a mall parking lot for a while—I was adamant that we weren’t the first ones there.

As we approached the Residence, it became clear just how big of an event this was. As we neared, I began to see a lot of people I knew walking in. Per the directions, we pulled into the driveway, checked in and showed our IDs, they opened the gate for us, and we were able to park in the half circle literally right in front of the Residence. By this point, my mom was freaking out because of how close we were able to park, and I was really excited because I kept seeing more and more people I knew. Before even going in, I said hi to and took some pictures with some friends outside of the building.

As we entered the house, it was a bit chaotic because of how crowded it was and there were a lot of people who used wheelchairs. I had my chair elevated, so I was able to be eye level with people. It was a little hard to move around because there were so many people. Once you found a spot, you kind of stayed put—at least that was the case for many of the wheelchair users in attendance.

About a half hour into the event, Governor Evers made an appearance. He mingled his way through the crowd saying hi and taking pictures with everyone. Unfortunately, it was too loud to use my communication app on my phone, so my mom introduced me to him and we took a picture. Each person only had like 30 seconds with him, but it was so neat to meet him. Never in a million years did I dream I’d have the opportunity to meet the Governor of Wisconsin. The reception was really highlighting Special Olympics athletes in the state, but I think it kind of morphed into something for disability advocates. There were like 110 spots available for athletes and other invited advocates who make a difference for people with disabilities in Wisconsin. Governor Evers did a short speech congratulating the athletes and thanking advocates for continuing to speak up.

Meeting the Governor was definitely a highlight of the night, but, for me personally, almost just as special was being among friends and colleagues who continue to advocate endlessly even when things seem so bleak. Due to transportation and care issues, I’m not able to get to as many in-person events as others do. I was able to finally meet several people who I have virtual meetings with. I also was able to make some new connections which was great.

As we pulled away from the Residence, I told my mom, “I love my crew.” She looked back at me in the rear-view mirror and said, “I know you do. That’s why I pushed for you to go.” For me, as a person who is considered nonverbal and is dependent on assistance from others, it’s a pretty remarkable feeling knowing that so many people value you and are willing to make the effort to include you.

Was this really a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity? Time will tell, but very likely, it was. The truth is that we never really know if an opportunity is “once-in-a-lifetime” or not. That’s why it’s important to treasure every opportunity we get. You never know when an opportunity could lead into even bigger opportunities!

***The views expressed here are strictly those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of InControl Wisconsin, the Network or any of our sponsors