Red Carpet Dream Team

Red Carpet 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 B – Red Carpet Area
Volunteer Position: Red Carpet
Team Lead: AnnMarie Hayden (E-mail)
Role: Your role is to provide buddies with crowns and tiaras. Buddies assigned to each guest will lead them down the red carpet, but you will be there to cheer everyone on and make them feel special as they stop and pose for pictures. Even though we have multiple red carpets, we have almost 1,000 guests with special needs to get into the prom area.
During the Event: At 6:30 pm, guests will enter. Once they’ve been crowned, cheer and make them feel amazing as they walk the red carpet! Keep it fun but moving at a healthy pace. Once every guest has come through, feel free to go into the main prom area and mingle about, bringing joy and energy to every area. Make sure to give lots of compliments to our special guests! At 9:30 return to the Red Carpet Area to help pass out gifts to our Kings and Queens as they leave.
Due to the overwhelming response we may ask you to help us by being a buddy as the event happens.

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.