“All hands on deck” Night to Shine Tallahassee is back on; here’s how you can help
Jan 09, 2025
Night to Shine Tallahassee is back on less than a week after it was canceled. The Tim Tebow Foundation-approved event will now be held at Immanuel Baptist Church. Watch the video to learn how you can play a role in giving the special needs community a memorable Night to Shine Prom event. BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:Night to Shine Tallahassee is no longer canceled! I'm Kenya Cardonne in the Northeast Tallahassee neighborhood, outside the new home of the annual Prom event for our special needs community. Now that Prom has been saved, it's an all-hands-on-deck operation to pull it off in less than 30 days.Elizabeth Crawford, Chair of Night to Shine Tallahassee 2025 - "I was just heartbroken. I was like, we have to have a Prom. We can't not have a Prom."It's a feeling neighbors have struggled with since they learned Night to Shine Tallahassee had been canceled due to Genesis Church no longer being able to host it.Matthew Whitfield, Night to Shine Guest - "Made me feel sad. I love Night to Shine."And so do the hundreds of neighbors who flooded social media with the passionate urge to still give these adults their Night to Shine.Neighbors like Elizabeth Crawford of Sport Clips, who has been a business sponsor for at least eight years.Crawford - "I know how important it is to our special needs community, to these people, to be able to have their Prom, to get out, to socialize, to have fun."Crawford is now the Chair of a committee that like-minded neighbors formed to turn the situation around. She tells me their meeting on Tuesday did just that.Crawford - "The number of people that showed up just ready to get their hands dirty, do whatever they had to do, not even really asking for anything specific to do, just 'whatever you need us to do, we'll do.'"By Wednesday afternoon, the Tim Tebow Foundation gave the green light for Night to Shine Tallahassee to take place at Immanuel Baptist Church one of several organizations that offered their space for the event without hesitation.Jim Moore, Associate Pastor at Immanuel Baptist Church - "For the special needs community who sometimes haven't been given everything they needed, now is an opportunity for Tallahassee and the community to come together and give them one night where they get to shine and it's just all a spotlight on them."With plenty of space for a petting zoo, a party bus, food, and dancing, Night to Shine is set to shine brighter than ever this year."I am so excited to tell you that Night to Shine is back on!"Whitfield - "Yay!"Crawford - "So, all those people that, you know, put all those comments on Facebook, we need you now to start signing up to volunteer, because we're going to need all hands on deck. This is a community outreach call out."An effort that longtime Night to Shine guests like Matthew Whitfield say they appreciate.Whitfield - "Thank you very much, the community of Tallahassee, Florida!"The event will take place on Friday, February 7th from 6:00 - 9:00 PM.Immanuel Baptist Church says they hope to be the home of Tallahassee Night to Shine for many years to come.If you want to help by volunteering or donating, click here.In Northeast Tallahassee, Kenya Cardonne ABC 27