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Troy Daniels wears the Special Olympics Australia pin (detail, inset) that commemorates his words. [Photo by Diana Roday Hosford] |
Former Special Olympics Vermont athlete Troy Daniels coins a phrase that captures attention halfway around the world: "Come Sit by Me"
by Kathy Smallwood
Troy Daniels delivered a knockout speech during his 2002 high school graduation ceremonies at Northfield Middle High School in Northfield, Vermont, USA, which so touched the hearts of the listeners that their response raised the roof and brought them to their feet.
Inspiration like that cannot be contained, and news of Daniels’ speech traveled as far away as Australia, where the country’s Special Olympics Program adopted a line from the speech, “come sit by me,” as buzzwords for its Program. It has become such a popular catchphrase for acceptance and inclusion that the Program went so far as to have a pin made bearing those words. Special Olympics Australia athletes who attended the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Dublin, Ireland, brought a batch of the pins to give to their peers from around the world. The phrase, “come sit by me,” seems to resonate with everyone who hears it — like a philosophy of life summed up in four words.
Since graduating from high school, Daniels still maintains his ties. He is the school’s team manager for the football (soccer), hockey and baseball teams. Somehow he fits that into his schedule between two jobs: working at a neighborhood convenience store and serving food to the residents of a senior care center. Recently, Daniels has had to learn to cook and clean since moving from his parents’ home into his own apartment.
Following is Daniels’ speech which has made an impact halfway around the world and is still creating a stir in the hearts and minds of people.
Inclusion is Not a Place; It is a Feeling
Troy Daniels Senior Speech, Monday, 13 May 2002
“My name is Troy Daniels, but my friends call me TD. I have Down syndrome. Because my heart is bad, I use a wheel chair. I do not speak very well and sometimes I use Libby [a speech device].
“I am person with disabilities and when I say ‘my friends’ I mean friends, real friends just like everyone else, I have friends. Most of you think all people have friends, but for people with disabilities friends are not always real. I want you to know why I have friends.
“Not too long ago, people with disabilities could not go to school with other kids. They had to go to ‘special schools.’ They could not have real friends. They call people like me ‘retard.’ That breaks my heart.
“When I came to school, there is law that says all kids go to school in the place they live. I started school right here in Northfield with all the senior class. We were little kids together. The law says that I can come to school, but no law can make me have friends.
“But then some kids started to think that I was okay, first it was just one or two kids who were nice to me. They found out that I cared about them and I loved my school. I told them I want to have real friends. Others started to hang out with me, and they found out we could be friends. We started to learn together that in some ways we were different but in some ways we were the same. They called me friend and made sure that I was in everything at school. I cared about them and they cared about me.
“I want all people to know and to see that these students I call my friends are the real teachers of life. They are showing you how it should be. They are the teachers for all of you to follow their lead.
“Yes, I am a person with a disability. The law says that I am included, but it is my friends who say… ‘TD, come sit by me.’”
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