To some, Tim Tebow is famous for being a Heisman Trophy winner who is also pro-life, but to 90,000 special needs young people, he’s famous for giving them a memorable prom. The Tim Tebow Foundation hosted the fourth annual “Night to Shine” prom on Friday night. The event was held at 540 churches in all 50 states and in 16 countries.
Each one of the young people is the prom “king” and “queen” at the Night to Shine. The prom is filled with pampering for the attendees, making the event look like a night filled with celebrities — only the stars are the attendees themselves. The Los Angeles Times reports:
Each “Night to Shine” welcomes guests with shoe shining stations for the men and hair and makeup stations for the women. At CCV in San Dimas, each prom goer and their date or caretaker arrived to cheering crowds and faux paparazzi as they walked down a red carpet.
After a lot of picture taking, the dance begins. Volunteers help out with everything, including getting the shyer ones on to the dance floor.
“One boy was dancing in his chair at one of the tables, so I went over and asked him if he wanted to go on to the dance floor with me,” volunteer Hannah Mitchell said…. “A smile lit up his face and melted my heart. It is truly one of the greatest events I have attended. Just to see everyone smiling, laughing and feeling so free is an experience I will never forget.”
The event website says:
Night to Shine is an unforgettable prom night experience, centered on God’s love, for people with special needs ages 14 and older. On one night, February 9, 2018, more than 540 churches from around the world will come together to host Night to Shine for approximately 90,000 honored guests through the support of 175,000 volunteers!
Twice in his video about the event, Tebow says, “it was one of the best nights of my life.” He says the Night to Shine is “A night where God shines, His community shines, the church shines, and every single one of the kings or queens shines.”
Fox News reports on Tebow’s reasons why he feels it is the best night of the year:
“… [W]e get to change so many lives,” Tebow said in a video promoting the event. “Honestly, it’s not just the night of their life where they get to dance, and they get to have fun. They get to ride in limos, they get to walk down red carpets.”
He added: “It’s so much more than life, because maybe for the first time, they realize that they’re worth it. They realize that they’re special. They realize that they’re loved. There’s not much more important than that.” …
Just like in past years, Tebow plans to make surprise visits at different locations.
“I’m going to love those kids,” Tebow said. “I’m going to make them feel special, and at the end of the night when they’re crowned king or queen of the prom, hopefully they leave realizing that the God of this universe loves them so much and has a special unique plan and purpose for their life. We get to show that with how much we love them.”
Tebow, who has left football and is now headed to spring training for the New York Mets to see if he has a career in the MLB, would likely argue he already has the most important job possible: sponsoring the Night to Shine prom and seeing the beautiful faces of the attendees shine. Tebow and his mother, Pam, have both been outspoken about being pro-life.
Night to Shine is taking names of churches to host the 2019 prom. You may refer a church via this link.
