One of my favorite things about working for CAT is being a part of people’s lives for years and getting to watch them grow. I saw two beautiful examples of this interacting with each in our CAT Climbing Community event last week.
Sofia* first started climbing with us when she was 12 (she just turned 16). She was super shy at the beginning and not very confident in herself or her climbing. Slowly she has come out of her shell and we have gotten to know the funny, smart, and kind person within. She started bringing her cousin with her and the two of them are regulars. Sofia learned to belay (support a climber) through CAT and often helps us with our climbing events at Steelworkers Park, spending hours at the top of the climbing wall helping scared climbers come back down.
The Garcia* family has been climbing with us for a couple of years off and on. We’re always excited to see their family of 6, plus grandma. =) The kids have always been shy and we often have to strain to hear them. But one of them has begun to open up as we challenge him to try harder climbs and chat about things he likes. The two younger girls both made it to the top of the wall tonight, a first. And their smiles were so big! We even got the dad to climb (reluctantly).
The moment that really inspired me though was when Sofia and her cousin started belaying the Garcia kids. To see Sofia and her cousin encouraging the kids and sharing advice with them, the way we have encouraged them, to see it come full circle, really made my heart smile. At one point I saw Sofia just sitting and chatting with the Garcia family, like old friends.
These are the kind of moments and connections that you can’t plan. And this is the kind of growth that we get to see when our participants let us be part of their lives for so long. This is why I love this job. Thank you for supporting us in this work!
- Laura
*names changed for privacy