Rocky Mountain Christian Church to host Shine prom

Did you ever dream of being the Prom Queen or Prom King? Well, only a few young people have ever been fortunate enough to live the experience. But for nearly 200 special needs students and young adults, that dream is about to come true.

On Friday, Sept. 8, Rocky Mountain Christian Church (RMCC) will host its annual Shine Prom for special needs guests 14 years old or older and their families at its Niwot and Frederick campuses, and every special guest will be crowned Prom King or Prom Queen during the evening's events. The gala will commence at both campuses at 6 p.m. and conclude at 9 p.m.

For those three hours, the Shine Prom's guests will receive VIP treatment, including carriage rides, dining, dancing, and karaoke. The event at RMCC-Frederick has already been sold out, but spaces are still available for guests to register for the Niwot RMCC campus event. Registration is available through the RMCC website: https://rocky.church/shine/.

The key to the number of guest openings is dependent on the number of "buddy" volunteers available to support the guests. "We try to do one-on-one buddies for each of our guests," explained Cameron Miller, RMCC's Special Needs Director. "We ask that one family member be a caregiver with each guest, but we also want to provide a volunteer buddy, so as we get more volunteers, we're able to increase the number of guests we can support."

It takes an army of volunteers to support the two proms with volunteer teams that include culinary arts, guest hospitality, activities, red carpet, dance floor and respite care services to support the families.

"So far at Frederick, we have 135 guests signed up and right now we're at about 110 volunteers," Miller said. "And then at Niwot, we have about 40 guests and 30 volunteers. We have a lot of different ways volunteers can help, but the buddies are absolutely the most important and hardest to get. I would say that our congregation at Rocky Mountain Christian Church does a really great job of participating, but we also welcome volunteers from throughout the community."

All volunteers must be at least 18 years old and are required to complete a mandatory training session on either Aug. 27 or Aug. 31 and successfully pass a background check prior to the Sept. 8 event. To volunteer to support these honored guests, sign up at https://rocky.church/shine/.

While the dates have not been finalized, a Prom Dress and Suit Shop will also be opened to support the event. Donations of used prom dresses and men's and boys' suits will be accepted and made available to the special guests. A year ago, the shop was open on the last Sunday in August and the Sunday before the event, according to Miller. Contact the church for more information and dates.

Many people connected with the special needs community may be familiar with a similar annual event, the Night to Shine, which is sponsored by the Tim Tebow Foundation. The Frederick Campus has hosted Night to Shine in the past, but RMCC found that hosting its own prom served its growing special needs community better, according to Miller.

"The Night to Shine program is a great one, but it is usually held during the winter (February in 2023) and it's hard to move around in a wheelchair when there's six inches of snow on the ground," Miller explained. "It's just hard to get out. We were like, hey, we already have this (special needs) community as part of our church, so what if we did our own (prom) in September?"

Without the funds and fundraising power of the Tebow Foundation behind it, RMCC's Shine Prom looks to attract local individual and corporate sponsorships.

"It's expensive to pull off an event like this. We cater for the event and we're feeding almost 800 people between the volunteers, families, the guests, and everyone in between. So, we welcome and appreciate individual and business sponsorships," Miller said.

Sponsorship levels range from $100 to cover the cost of one special guest and caregiver (all special guests are free) to $5,000+ for a Gold Level contribution, which includes a logo on the slideshow during the event, sponsorship promoted on the night of the event and on social media, sponsorship promoted on the registration page, the largest logo on the Shine Prom banner, and four guest passes to the event. More information is available on the Shine Prom webpage: https://rocky.church/shine/.

Miller added that while Shine Prom is a very special event, it isn't the only part of RMCC's special needs ministry.

"Actually, probably the biggest part of my job is we put on monthly events throughout the year," Miller explained about the Friday Nights Out program, which meets on the second Friday of each month, alternating between the two campuses and offering activities such as bingo, scavenger hunts and other entertainment. "Shine Prom is a very special event and I love it, and it's a big win for a lot of our friends. But if that's all we have to offer, I think we're missing our community and don't serve them well."