More than 140 Mormon teens converted a large local church parking lot into a Fun Fair for disabled children on the last Saturday in June. The festivities were free and included activities and crafts such as face painting, noodle necklaces, bowling, shooting hoops, a large brightly colored inflatable obstacle course and slide, a fire truck, free photos by a professional photographer and a large wagon ride pulled by a tractor. Guests were treated to plenty of freshly made popcorn and cotton candy.

The carnival was part of an annual youth conference held by the Bothell Washington Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The teens, ages 14-18, came Friday night for two hours of introduction and training prior to the carnival on Saturday.

Marie Juchau, a Bothell resident and mother of an 11-year old autistic child, spoke to the teens, teaching them about special needs children and preparing them to serve the guests who would attend the fair. “It is absolutely wonderful that these teens want to serve special-needs kids. I know that it will help them feel more comfortable when they meet other disabled people in our community.”

The planning for this event started in December 2009 and was driven by a youth committee who decided on the idea.

One of the youths who spearheaded this event was Savannah Roll, a cheerful 16-year-old who has served as a peer mentor at the Bothell High Contained Learning Center. “I love to help others learn new skills and grow. The special-needs students have become some of my closest friends. They are always so kind — they always say, ‘Hi,’ to me in the hallway.”

Local agencies were contacted and more than 500 invitations were sent to local families. All of the special guests were greeted by enthusiastic teens who accompanied them through all of the activities.

Meanwhile, the Mormon teens were also involved in painting hundreds of handmade wooden toys—cars, trucks, animals and blocks — to be sent to orphanages, pediatric cancer clinics, dental waiting rooms and special-needs hospitals in Central America. Woodinville resident LuAnn Baxter and Bothell residents David and Kathy Watson coordinated the project and spent untold hours cutting out and preparing the wooden toys.

Sarah Jenson, a recent Inglemoor High graduate who manned the Trike Station, summed it up this way, “It felt really good to see how happy the special-needs kids were.”