TMC PULSE

t m c » p u l s e | a p r i l 2 0 1 5 19 Committee, has given hundreds of children with special needs the chance to feel like a real cowboy or cowgirl. "The meaning of our entire com- mittee and the events that we hold is to allow children to have a rodeo experience who would not otherwise get to have that opportunity," said Amie Dean, vice chairman of the Lil' Rustlers Rodeo. "We contact different programs in the surround- ing areas that children are involved in so we can see what their needs are for Rodeo and how many partici- pants they think they will have." The participants check in at NRG Center, where a small band plays lively tunes and rodeo clowns weave through the crowd, drawing giggles from mini cowboys and girls. After donning special shirts and hats, as well as a rodeo number to wear in the arena, each child is paired with a volunteer. "The volunteers take participants around to the different events in the arena," said Dean. "Once they've done as much as they want to do in the time we have, they can leave and get a trophy, a belt buckle and a gift bag." This year, several children from Texas Children's Cancer Center par- ticipated in the Lil' Rustlers Rodeo, including eight-year-old Avaya, a long-term cancer survivor at Texas Children's. Avaya underwent sur- gery and chemotherapy in 2010 for a malignant tumor over her heart. These days, Avaya is doing "awesome," said mom Kelley Holloway. And when her family heard about the opportunity to par- ticipate in the Lil' Rustlers Rodeo, they knew it was the perfect activity for the outgoing little girl. "She absolutely loves the rodeo and anything that has to do with getting dressed up western, getting to ride on horses," said Holloway. "Whenever the rodeo comes around it's our favorite time of year, and we're really excited to be a part of it in this way." With eyes shining and a big grin on her face, Avaya's joy was unmistakable. As she and her volunteer cowboy progressed through the different events—"bull riding" on a seesaw made of hay bales, riding a real horse, petting baby animals—a rodeo announcer called out her name over the loud- speakers and she appeared on the giant video screen, just like a real cowgirl. "I think it's really cool that peo- ple are able to do this for the kids so they can experience something that maybe not everyone gets to experi- ence," said Holloway. Elsy Espinoza, whose son, Caleb, also participated, echoed those sentiments. "All these kids, Caleb and his friends, go through so much," Espinoza said. "For them to do something like this, it's really nice. It's a chance for them to have fun outside of the hospital and a chance for them to meet cowboys." Caleb is also a cancer survivor who was treated at Texas Children's. Diagnosed with hepatoblastoma, a form of liver cancer, at only 16 months old, he received a liver trans- plant at the tender age of 18 months. Today, he is cancer free. At three years old, Caleb could easily have been overwhelmed by the amount of activity during the Lil' Rustlers Rodeo, but the serious little boy took it all in stride. He pro- gressed through the events with his volunteer cowboy and his mother by his side, documenting it all with her cell phone camera. Like Espinoza, many of the parents get as much joy out of Lil' Rustlers as their children, which Dean loves to see. "The expressions on the parents' faces might be one of my favorite things, because they're getting to watch their children experience something that they don't get to do on a regular basis," she said. "It makes all of the work so worth it. I wouldn't even call it work. It's just fun because you know that the end result is 100 times more than what you could imagine." The clinic goes through roughly 128 rolls of athletic tape during RodeoHouston TOP: Three-year-old Caleb ropes a steer under the watchful eye of his volunteer cowboy. BOTTOM: Avaya, 8, waves to the crowd at the Lil' Rustlers Rodeo.

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