¨To know that somebody took the time out of their valuable lives to honor others, that means a lot. That’s the true meaning of Winterfest to me,¨ said Sherry.  Dare2Be recently hosted a successful celebratory Winterfest at Dimmitt Middle School on December 16th, 2023 to honor the wonderful and committed Kinship Caregivers. Kinship Caregivers are the guardians of children when their parents are unable to care for them. The Queen Cohorts are student volunteers from an after-school youth leadership club who were fortunate to do much of the planning and to put together the event. We were grateful to have the opportunity to interview both a Kinship Caregiver and the Queen Cohorts regarding the event. Here is what they have to say about their contribution and to be able to be part of the Winterfest. 

Kinship Caregiver

Kinship Caregivers and families seated at the event 

“The decor, elegance and beauty,” is what had caught Kinship Caregiver, Sherry Dion’s attention when she walked into Winterfest. “OMG” is what she proclaimed as she was welcomed with love, hospitality and warmth all around and seeing the balloons, games, stores and music organized throughout the event. Clearly, this event was “carefully thought of.” “You just feel loved, like arms wrapped around you,” is what she describes recognizing the unity of the Queen Cohorts, Kinship Caregivers, families and guests. To celebrate Kinship Caregivers like Sherry Dion who is selfless enough to take care of young individuals like Aaniyah, we celebrate as they motivate their children to grow, enrich their minds, and give them overflowing love and care. “Winterfest means coming to unity and honoring families in the special time of year.” Although setting up the event with the Queen Cohorts had difficulties, the Kinship Caregivers were accommodating and helpful. Speaking of the Queen Cohorts, here are the clever brains behind the Winterfest!

Sherry Dion (Kinship Caregiver) and Aaniyah

Queen Cohorts 

Behind the scenes, the Queen Cohorts had already begun thinking about the event since last October. Cherryl noticed the young girls taking inspiration from Pinterest and their community engagement. They spoke with their grandparents to answer the question, ¨If we want to show you we care about you and we appreciate you, what would that look like?¨ Giving out gifts to children was their plan, including inviting local vendors to sell their food and create an all-inclusive theme. Although wrapping presents was their plan, Imani and Caliyah thought it was one of the most challenging things to do. ¨I was scared that the kids would not like the gifts,¨ Imani shared. Keeping up to date to complete wrapping the presents was also difficult. ¨We had to do it in 3 days…from 2:35 to 5:00 pm wrapping a lot of presents,¨ explained Caliyah.  In a group interview with Lyrrehc, Margarita, Kissten, Camryn, and Penelope, it was difficult for them to stay on track with each other´s schedules and to respect all different celebrations. ¨With it being the winterfest, you kinda want to include Christmas, but at the same time you don’t, because some of the families might be Jewish or Muslim. So trying to make it all inclusive” was a challenge.

Dare2Be’s Queen Cohorts selling hot chocolate

This group of Queen Cohorts and Cherryl agreed to support each other, which was most important during the work process. ¨If we would’ve done everything separately, we would´ve hurt ourselves and not got anything done.¨ One of the young girls in the group interview mentioned adapting to change was an important aspect, just like becoming more independent and working through alternatives when items did not arrive on time. To Imani, giving people happiness was most important by ¨setting it up for those who need it and those in need.¨ 

Dare2Be’s Queen Cohorts presenting a speech

Cherryl expressed how extremely proud she is of the Queen Cohorts creating their first event together and their actions as young individuals. ¨I feel really proud to see young people really think about how they can give back and really change that story and that narrative that young people don’t care anymore,¨ Cherryl stated.  Caliyah enjoyed the feeling of freedom for her contribution, ¨we were given all the resources that we needed. We were told that we could do anything we want, and we were given no restrictions.¨ In the group interview with Lyrrehc, Margarita, Kissten, Camryn, Penelope, they revealed it felt tiring, however it was a pleasure to gain work experience in the real world and do fun activities with each other. Imani was heartwarmed supporting her own Skyway community. ¨I grew up over here [Skyway/Renton, WA] and I was raised here. It feels good to give back to those who need it.¨ 

Many of the Queen cohorts were very excited for the soul food provided, but besides the delicious food, Imani and Caliyah were both excited for the reactions of the children receiving their presents. Caliyah exclaims, ¨I helped wrap most of the presents, if not all of them. And I can’t wait for them to be excited.¨ One of the Queen Cohorts in the group interview mentioned they were excited to meet the guests and see their reactions to the overall event. The Queen Cohorts were set and were looking forward to honoring supportive people from the community. 

To wrap up this year’s Winterfest, it has been a fantastic experience for everyone that took an enormous amount of time and dedication to put the event together and bring their plans to life. The Kinship Caregivers and Queen Cohorts enjoyed this celebration together and hopefully there will be another one coming soon next year.  As for now, this event is a reminder to celebrate and honor your guardians and caretakers who put a lot of effort into providing and nurturing young people to have a better future and a healthier lifestyle. Whether it’s reminding them they are loved, and supported and honored by the community, to assisting them whenever needed. Anything that will give them reassurance that the community has their back. Overall the Winterfest was an incredible, inclusive, and honorable celebration. We can’t wait to see what the 2024 Winterfest will look like. Until then, live, laugh, Winterfest!

Interviewees:

Queen Cohorts: 

• Caliyah 
• Imani 
• Penelope
• Camryn 
• Kissten
• Margarita 
• Cherryl 
• Lyrrehc 

Kinship Caregiver:

• Sherry Dion 

Non-Profit Organization:

• Dare2Be