HOUSTON – On Monday afternoon about three dozen kids descended on Discovery Green’s ice rink.
Most of them had never put on a pair of ice skates.
“About a week ago I woke up and I decided I wanted to do something fun for the community,” said Joy Sewing.
Sewing is the woman behind this Day of Joy for underprivileged kids. With the help of HEB, Discovery Green, Dr. Charly Anderson, Mizz Goodie 2 Shoez and Corporate Services International, she was able to provide a free session of ice skating plus toys and dinner.
It's one small part of a larger effort: Year of Joy.
“The Year of Joy really is to remind myself to be grateful for the little things every day,” said Sewing. “Sometimes we forget and at the end of the day, dealing with traffic, dealing with work, dealing with people, that we forget how blessed we are.”
How does one spread that grateful feeling?
For Sewing, a former competitive ice skater and coach, the answer was ice skating.
“Perhaps maybe that might be the impetus for them to try something new or discover something new about themselves or have a new opportunity because they said, 'Well, if I can conquer ice skating, I can do something else,’” said Sewing.
By the end of the event, even the kids who were most afraid to leave the wall made their way out onto the ice sporting giant smiles.