Ten children with special needs were invited to try out the world of skiing from Friday, 25 March, to Sunday, 27 March, in a partnership with RollOn Austria, Skidimension Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis, Rolltechnik Praschberger, the Fiss-Ladis ski school, and Hotel Chesa Monte Fiss.
We move. You smile.
"We have been in motion without interruption for 25 years in order to make our partners and their guests smile," Sunkid's managing director Emanuel Wohlfarter says. "As a global group of companies, we offer a wide range of products for tourism regions, leisure parks, and worlds of experience. Our innovative solutions for transporting people and goods are moving millions of people around the world today." The Moving Carpet is one of Sunkid's most successful products. It has brought easy skiing fun, in particular to children, for 25 years as well. It is used in skiing areas as well as in urban environments since its flexible structure is suitable for virtually any "hill". The successful company did not throw any great party to celebrate the two25th anniversaries in times of pandemic and in light of current developments. Instead, it tried to make children smile with a very special skiing course. The event's star was Marlies Raich, who immediately agreed to join the event. "I am a mother of three myself. I know how important it is for our children to have a perspective in life and in this world. Contributing to bringing joy to these special children in particular, and to give them the courage to know that they can master even extraordinary challenges, is very dear to me."
A special weekend
"Skiing is a popular sport, and it must keep that status. No one must be excluded," explains Sunkid's head of marketing and events Christopher Kössler. "That is why we chosen to spend a memorable skiing weekend with some children with special needs. Together with our great partners, we were able to put together a truly special program for the children." Benny Pregenzer, managing director of Fisser Bergbahnen GmbH, was a co-inventor and one of the first customers of the Moving Carpet.
He also contributed to collecting ideas for the skiing weekend, supporting the extraordinary project from the beginning in the areas of organizational processes and gastronomy. "The idea for this event was born during a fun talk about the old days - after all, we have been cooperating with Sunkid for a very long time. We contacted the RollOn association and Marianne Hengl, and the project took off," he tells.
Living with disabilities: "Have faith in our abilities".
Co-organizer Marianne Hengl, chairwoman of RollOn Austria, disability activist, author, radio and TV host, is invested in giving people with disabilities a face in society with her publicity work. "I am particularly happy that Sunkid contacted me about this project. Some children with disabilities will have their first experience on skis this weekend. They are greatly looking forward to it, and the excitement about the great day is downright overwhelming."
Life with a disability does not mean automatic failure. Of course, it is important to contribute the strength to master these challenges - and to potentially even view them as opportunities - but it is just as important that there are people to strengthen and motivate. Sunkid showed its special appreciation for people with disabilities with this sustainable and positive campaign. Sunkid's great gift also brought joy to the parents who accompanied their children on this special weekend. They saw the campaign as an encouraging sign that they and their "special" children were not overlooked by society. The motto was: "Trust in our abilities."
Great framework program
After checking in at the Hotel Chesa Monte and trying some first swings on skis together with trained skiing instructors of the Fiss-Ladis skiing school on Friday, Saturday started with the program's most important part. Marlies Raich visited the event, spending the afternoon with the children and their parents. After skiing on Saturday, all participants met up at the Sonnenburg Fiss-Ladis, where the framework program commenced. It was moderated by Tyrolean cult band Bluatschink. Finally, Marianne Hengl presented her new book "Stehaufmenschen" on the stage. Sunday ended the exciting weekend on the slope with lots of fun.