Lost in the headlines about non-masked bikers bringing bad news to Sturgis, the Hamsters M/C has rolled into western South Dakota to make an impact for kids with disabilities… again! The international motorcycle group came together to donate $160,000+ to LifeScape of Rapid City to support local children with disabilities. In fact, Hamsters USA has donated funds at their annual meeting in the Black Hills for the past 15 years.
This year’s event brings the 15-year cumulative total to nearly $3.5 million raised for LifeScape in Rapid City. During a normal year, one of the children impacted by the dollars raised by the Hamsters would be in attendance at the event, however COVID threw a wrench into the works. That did not stop T.J. Lindsay of Rapid City from being highlighted in the annual program.
T.J. was diagnosed with autism when he was a year old. Autism means different things for each person diagnosed. For T.J., in addition to hyper-motion in his body movements and being non-verbal, it means he is very specific about how he likes things to be. T.J. primarily receives occupational and speech therapy. After working with LifeScape over the span of just one year, T.J.’s word count has expanded significantly, and he now uses up to 20 words! The most special word was when he recently said “Mom” for the first time. “Having him say ‘Mom’ to me in context was everything to me,” his mother Holly shared. “LifeScape has definitely given him the support to find his voice.”
Jessica Wells, President of the LifeScape Foundation, added, “We are so grateful for 15 years of commitment and caring from this very special group of gentlemen. Their love of this region and the children they support shows through in the dollars they raise and the sentiments they share. These guys warm our hearts every year – our services would look very different were it not for them.”