Buddy Dream Team

Buddy Dream Team

 
Thanks for signing up to be part of Night to Shine this Friday at the Cox Business Convention Center (100 Civic Center, Tulsa, OK 74103). Below you will find your personalized guide to the night for you serving. We will have coat check available. This year we will be doing virtual training with the additional training being done on site. Please pay careful attention to your meeting time as you will need to give yourself time to park and enter the building. There are also helpful reminders within the video posted below.
Attire: Formal
Meeting Time: 6:00 p.m.
Meeting Location: Exhibit Hall A – Buddy Check-In
Volunteer Position: Buddies
Team Lead: Pastor Zak Swalley (E-mail)

Role: Being a buddy is one of the most personal and hands-on serving opportunities. A buddy’s role is to accompany and assist each of our assigned guests throughout the evening, engage them in conversation, laugh with them, make them feel special, tell them how great they look, etc. You are free to have your cell phone, but only use when needed.
Your goal is to make guests aware of and assist them to the various opportunities provided during the night.
Such as:
• Dancing
• Food/Drinks
• Karaoke
• Limo Rides
• Sensory Room
• Photo booths
• Caricatures
• Beauty Rooms (for the girls)
• Shoe Shine (for the guys)
• Calming Room

During the event: You will wait inside Exhibit Hall A until you are paired with a guest by a member of our team.

**If you have a specific guest you are a buddy for please meet up with them before you enter the registration line. You are not required to be at the 6:00 p.m. meeting, but you will still need to follow the on-site registration information.**
DURING THE PROM: This night is all about your special guest. Feel free to help them step out of their comfort zone, but be mindful of them and don’t push too hard. Your job is to make sure they have the best night ever!
While in line with guest/caretaker
Once you are paired with a guest you will use your phone to scan the QR code on your wristband and enter their first and last name and your first and last name and hit submit. 
Upon submission it will send a text to both parties with the appropriate information. 
Caretakers receive your name and cell phone number for emergencies
You will receive Caretakers name, cell phone number, and allergies
Please set up a meeting place for afterwards with the caretaker
If you are having trouble finding the name of the guest you can type in “shine” in the area for the guest first name and it will open a form for you to fill out with the help of the caretaker. 
**We will be sending you a training video specifically for this process.**
Wristbands
Gold – Buddy
Orange – Allergies
Silver – Guest
Black – Caretaker
**Do not place a wristband on someone until you have verified the information is received by Buddy and Caretaker**

Items to know:
We will have several professional photographers at the event, so as you are walking, people will be taking pictures Stop to smile periodically for a picture, but move quickly as we have lots of guests to get inside. Have fun with this and make your guest have a reason to smile! 
Most of the events for guests are located in Exhibit Hall A and open at 7:00 pm.
Chick-Fil-A is providing meals for everyone who attends.
Respite room for caretakers/parents is in Exhibit Hall A
Parents/caretakers should be encouraged to go enjoy the respite or come back at the end of the event (10pm). Make sure they know that we will take great of their loved one.
Dancing – spend most of your night in the main room dancing and having fun. Set the tone for the night. If you are having a blast dancing, so will they.
Food/Drinks – Chick-Fil-A is providing dinner for everyone. Feel free to eat with your guest during the night. Chik-Fil-A does have limited options available depending on allergies. Please help us make sure the room stays manageable by redirecting them to other activities if it is full. After you have eaten please exit to make sure we have room for everyone to eat.
Karaoke Rooms – After the video from Tim Tebow video and welcome, the  karaoke rooms will be open. Take your guest at some point in the night and ask if they’d like to sing. If the rooms are too crowded, sign them up with their favorite song and encourage them to come back a little later.  
Calming Rooms – This room is a place for guests who are feeling overwhelmed and just need to relax.
Limo Rides – You will ride in the limo with your special guest. The rides will be a fun and special time for those attending.
Sensory – This room will have black paper on the walls where guests can draw whatever they feel like… all with glow markers/pens. Bubble machines will go off every 10 minutes. The goal is to make it feel like a New Year’s countdown where everyone cheers and celebrates when the bubbles go off!
Photo booth pictures – You and your guest can take as many pictures as you’d like!
Caricatures – Caricature artists are available to draw exaggerated sketches of guests.
Beauty Room – Take them for a touch up in the beauty room. This is just another way to make them feel special!
Shoe Shines – After a long night of dancing take them for a touch up.
2023 Night to Shine Info Video from TheAssembly.org on Vimeo.

Maps
Limo Line
We will be using a service called WaitWhile for our limo rides for the night. It is a digital way to stay in line so that you will get a text update when your ride is coming up. There will be signs posted to sign-up. Here is a map that will show you the location for where limos are going to be located for the night.

Parking

There are nearly 10,000 parking spaces within a short walk of our facility: The City of Tulsa utilizes the Park Mobile app to pay for metered street parking downtown during business hours, and these parking spaces are free after 5:00pm each day. The Civic Center Parkade located at 3rd and Houston Streets, which is owned and operated by American Parking, is connected to our facility by covered walkway; there are 1,395 spaces available in the Parkade and they are available for $5-$10 per car, per day depending on other downtown events. There are several private lots which may open up for public parking during events at their own rates. 
People First Language
We want our guests to know they are the most valuable and important people in the room. People first language aims to avoid perceived and subconscious dehumanization when discussing people with disabilities.
Avoid these terms/phrases
  • Retarded
  • Crippled
  • Deaf and Dumb
  • Mentally Different
  • Wheelchair-bound
  • Diseased
  • Emotionally Disturbed
  • Slow
  • Infirmed
  • Unfortunate
  • “Suffers from”
  • “Victim of”
Rephrasing
Instead of
“a disabled person,” say “a person with disabilities”
Instead of
“a special needs person,” say “a person with special needs”
Instead of
“autistic person,” say “a person with autism”
The key thing to remember is to put the person first. They are not their disability; they are first and foremost a child of God, and a person with feelings and emotions just like you.  
GENERAL TIPS FOR COMMUNICATING
When assisting a person with a disability, wait until your help is accepted and then ask how you can best assist them.
  • Address them just as you would any other person.
  • It is acceptable to offer a handshake during introductions even if the other person has limited mobility in their hand or an artificial limb.
  • Do not alter your voice or speak in a simplified, childish manner.
  • If an interpreter is present, speak directly to the person and not their interpreter.
  • Do not lean on anyone’s wheelchair.
  • If the person with whom you are speaking has a visual disability, make sure you identify yourself and any people who may be accompanying you.
  •  Be patient if the person with whom you are speaking has trouble understanding you.
  • Do not get frustrated or raise your voice in an unpleasant way.
PREVENTING & HANDLING AWKWARD OR UNCOMFORTABLE SITUATIONS
  • If you find yourself in an uncomfortable situation, do not be afraid to ask for help.
  • Some signs of overstimulation include: yelling, screaming, crying, extreme fidgeting, fearful looks and/or aggressive behavior. If this happens, redirect them to a quieter location and if needed, find your guest’s chaperone/guardian.
  • Maintain your composure and speak kindly at all times.
  • Never go off alone with one of the guests.
  • Make sure you maintain physical boundaries and don’t in any way encourage a guest to view you as their boyfriend/girlfriend.

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