Little Treasure

at the Dollar General, or the DG as I call it, can become a phenomenal treasure that will lift your spirits. Who knew the movies there could actually become a favorite. I have three issues, actually more, but will mention three and stick to one for now. Books, pens, and movies. I could do a post on each, but this one is about a movie.

I like to go through movies wherever I am because I have a problem. I’m a sucker for a good “based on a true story movie”, especially if it’s a story I’ve never heard of before. And a couple of weeks ago I found just such a movie and I want to share with you about it. Caution: I love to go in depth about movies and end up spoiling it for those who do not like knowing what happens or how it ends, because I’m a “Googler” and need to know everything before or at least during the movie. This drives most people nuts about me, but that’s who I am. I will try not to spoil anything for you, but no promises.

Time: 1989
Place: High School Grand Rapids Michigan
Class: Special Needs
Teachers: Mike Kersjes and Robynn McKinney

This story and my story prove that people will live up or down to what they are told about themselves. When I watched it, I have to sadly admit I found myself being a little jealous that these kids had the best teachers, parents, and mentors. It didn’t last long, because I know they had so many odds stacked against them, they deserved all they got.

Their needs were varied, ranging from hearing and visual impairments, Downs Syndrome, Tourette’s Syndrome, Bi-Polar, Dyslexia, ADHD, emotional issues, to some needs I didn’t recognize.

They go on a field trip to a museum and the students are so bad, they get thrown out and not allowed to ever return. On the bus going back to school, the “tattle tell” student tells the teacher (Mike) another student took a brochure. The teacher smiles and says it’s okay for them to take one. She then says he has more than one. We see him with a big handful of brochures for Space Camp in Huntsville Alabama.

In the movie, Mike (or as they call him, Coach) gets the idea to pass the brochures out as a reading assignment since they have so many. And that is where it all gets started. I will stop here about the actual movie, so as not to spoil it. But I did look up some information about the actual story. I also discovered he wrote a book about it (I really, really need that book LOL as if).

He was the special education teacher and the assistant football coach. In football, he said he learned, “Not every player is gifted enough to be a star, but the cumulative talents of a team can overcome many shortcomings”.

His very first obstacle came from the school system itself. No one in the entire district believed he could prepare one of his classes for the experience that challenged even the brightest of high school students. Some of his peers even called his students “idiots” and said there was no way they could survive a week at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville Alabama for Space Camp.

He then went over the entire district and straight to Huntsville Space Center. He had to do a presentation and focused on the “Power of the Human Spirit.” He said of his students’ needs, “I don’t see them as physical disabilities, I just see them as obstacles to overcome”.

I will tell you, you will love Dan Trierweiler, a local executive owning several burger stands, who hires the students to work for him and is portrayed in the movie.

I will be watching the movie again soon, because I usually miss some stuff the first go round, mostly because I’m “Googling”. When I read about a former University of Michigan football coach, Bo Schembechler, I could not remember if he was portrayed in the movie. I read he provided much-needed advise at a football camp when Mike told him he felt he needed to be a genius to get his students ready for Space Camp. Bo replied by asking Mike a question. Mike said, “Bo asked me the definition of genius, and I gave him the Webster’s definition. But he told me the definition of a genius is someone who takes something complicated and makes it simple. That really hit home with what I was trying to do with the kids”. And they lived up to, and actually exceeded, what Mike told them about themselves.

I am always interested in how exceptional people start out doing what they become exceptional at, so I read some more and discovered in 1972 Mike had just returned from Vietnam and was starting junior college. He had a cousin named Kevin with Down’s Syndrome. His aunt and uncle needed someone they could trust to take care of Kevin from time to time, so Mike’s mom asked him if he would mind helping as needed. Mike said, “I said ‘yes’ and after my experience from the weekend, I knew from that moment on, my calling was special education. I believe in teaching kids to challenge themselves, to question the labels that have been thrust upon them”.

I do wish I had had someone like that in my life as a child. I was consistently told I was not good enough, I should be ashamed of myself, was made to do things over and over until my mother got fed up and told me to leave so she could do it “right”. And I have lived down to what I was told about myself. Even at 50 + she tells me I do things wrong, but now I understand what she considers “wrong” is just not doing something “her” way. I do sometimes wonder where I would be in life if I would have had encouragement instead of belittling, but I quickly realize that gets me nowhere fast. I also know it’s never too late to learn things for myself.

Here are a couple of videos about the movie and the making of it. I really hope you enjoy it and find a way to watch it. It is very uplifting. I cried, I laughed, I held my breath, and I cheered.

This is obviously an old trailer, so I’m not sure where you can watch it now.