Stevie Ray

I've  got a special little friend that I've  watched grow up from a little bitty pup to a sweet, beautiful young woman.  She is special in so many ways, but the one that means so much to me is that she just wants to be like you and me.  Stevie has never been like you or me, because she takes being like you and me to a whole different level.  My friend Stevie has been blind since birth.

I met Stevie through our travels on the soccer field.  She was the little sister of one of the team mates.  When she would meet you for the first time, she would want to feel your face.  Through her hands she would immediately know what you looked like.  She would then ask you if you had a cell phone.  She would cuddle it, just like she did your face, making you wonder if you and your phone had been cataloged in her head together!

As she got older, and spent more time with her family at the soccer fields, one day she asked her dad, Mike, "daddy, why can't I play soccer too?"  Well, Mike being the parent that he is, took that question to heart.  It almost broke him, until he discovered a small program called "Top Soccer".

 Mike brought Top Soccer to Mississippi.  It was a soccer program for children of all disabilities.  He got people like My good friend Tommy Wolf involved.  Tommy pulled me in.  Best investment of my time I ever made!

Stevie was able to play soccer with the assistance of a guide, and a soccer ball with a bell inside.  That ball was the most magical thing I had ever seen.  It opened the eyes of so many kids and parents alike!  I kept a watchful eye while I was assisting the kids with down syndrome.  After the sessions were over, the parents of all these special kids were begging for more!

Stevie went through out school trying to be a normal kid.  She attended the same schools as her brothers.  Stevie in no way could ever be just a normal kid.  Her drive to get there sent her over the top.  She was given a talent for music and playing the piano.

As a senior, she spent time in New York, learning how to me more independent.   In this past year she got a life partner in her guide dog, named Nala Belle.

This summer Stevie went off to college at MSU, becoming a pledge of her mother's soriety.  Not only did the soriety take in Stevie on bid day, but Nala Belle was made a sister too!

My friend Stevie!

Nala Belle

As you can see, Stevie has never been a normal anything.  Tomorrow, at MSU's homecoming, Stevie will be a freshman maid.  I'll be in the stands cheering her on with a smile on my face and my cowbell clanging away.  #HailStevieRay!

Stevie on the far left!