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OGDEN — Anna and Elsa from Disney's "Frozen" line up eagerly with candy bags in hand. They're followed closely by Marvel's Iron Man, Dr. Seuss's Thing 1, Winnie the Pooh, a cheerleader, skeletons and others wearing a variety of Halloween costumes.
They're as excited as any kids during the biggest candy-collecting day of the year, but these aren't just any trick-or-treaters. These are clients of Together We Shine, an Ogden-based services and support organization for adults with disabilities.
Monday saw them trick-or-treating along the hall of their own building after too few community members turned out for the originally planned trunk-or-treat. But staff and clients alike rolled with the setback and had a great time, anyway.
"Right there's one of those (reasons we do this)," said Together We Shine owner Heidi Bernal as client Ryan hugged program director Lindzie Anderson Johnson.
Bernal said her family fostered people with varying disabilities for over 20 years. During some of that time, it was difficult to get the level of help necessary for her adopted son, Braxton, she said. So, she began Together We Shine around three years ago "because we wanted something different."
Braxton died about a year ago, Bernal said, but Together We Shine continues making a difference for their 26 clients.
Johnson said the organization places clients with host homes and residential homes. She currently provides a host home to two clients, one of whom has seen significant improvement since living with her.
She also said their day program has been operating for about a year, and they get around 20 clients each day spending time at their facilities. They work on social skills, relationships and building independence, especially by making friends out in the community, Johnson said.
For holidays, they like to "make it as big and as fun as we can," Johnson said. Halloween activities this year have included a pumpkin contest, a haunted house contest and a costume contest.
Several clients also helped pass out candy during Monday's festivities, including Bernal's adopted son, Junior. Dressed up as a doctor, he offered a Reese's peanut butter cup and an emphatic "Happy Halloween!" to everyone who walked by.
Bernal said the most challenging part of running Together We Shine isn't just finding employees, but finding employees "who want to make a difference."
And if the community wants to support them, they're always looking for people to help with activities or to make donations, she said. They can also follow Together We Shine's Facebook page.
