“My dad taught me how to skate when I was three years old. He’s been making me a better hockey player since. He used to play hockey. Now my dad and brother are coaches for my team [Chicago Blackhawks Special Hockey].

“I play center and offense. I really want to get more goals. I was just nominated to be an alternate captain. I’ve never been nominated before.  I do love all the great games and practices, plus we have the best fans in the world! I go to the banquets every year. 

“My senior year, my boyfriend asked me to prom at the banquet. I was happy crying. My mom got really emotional too. 

“I’m also a global messenger for Special Olympics. I do lots of speeches for events and fundraisers. 

“Right now I go to COD. It stands for College of DuPage, but my friend calls it ‘College of Dreams.’ My friend and I are taking a horticulture class there. I’m also in the [STEPS] transition program.  I take some classes and right now, I’m working on Mondays at Buffalo Wild Wings and Fridays at Cici's Pizza. On Tuesdays, I work at Teacher Peach, where I do office work—lots of filing, shredding, and packaging. I want to challenge myself.

"What I want to do in the future is move to Florida. My dad and I are going to start a business together. We have a dream of building a waffle shack on Marco Island. It’s my favorite place to be. We go a lot. I like to go the beach and fall asleep listening to the sound of the waves. And I always go to the hot tubs—they are calling my name. 

“My world is beautiful because I love to hang out with lots of people.”