A new event called “Just Us” took place September 29 in Blackshear City Park. If you saw fire trucks and police cars in the park that afternoon, there was no emergency taking place, just a lot of fun and hopefully some learning and understanding.
Organizer Alle Lee is the special education teacher for Pierce County Middle School, but this is an initiative she has devised on her own. While a lot of the volunteers come from the middle school, faculty and students alike, the event is not specifically endorsed by the school system. Instead, Just Us is a homegrown expression of love and community aimed at bringing those with special needs and the wider public together in a way where both can share and learn.
The event did not lack for volunteers. Tim and Mandy Power of Powers Farm & Homestead set up a table to give out both bibles from the Gideons and a chance for kids to hold eggs and cuddle with baby chicks. Blackshear Police and Fire Departments were on hand to talk with kids and show them the vehicles that help them do their jobs. Workers from city hall passed out bags of popcorn. Pierce Middle School cafeteria workers and members of the school’s Junior Beta Club helped wherever they could, especially fluffing up a huge colorful parachute for kids to race around underneath. Ladies from The Lemonade Experience even came all the way from Jacksonville to provide free lemonade and cotton candy. In fact, the entire Just Us event was completely free, something that makes Lee very proud, saying, “No one made a penny.”
