Tim Tebow’s Night to Shine prom will be a night these kids will never forget
The night of Feb. 9 is prom night around the world. Not just any prom, but the fourth annual Night to Shine prom sponsored by the Tim Tebow Foundation.
More than 540 churches in all 50 states and 16 countries will make it a special night for participants with special needs. In the Triangle, Hope Community Church is one of the locations sponsoring a Night to Shine. This is Hope’s second year being a part of the program.
“Last year we hosted at our Raleigh campus and this year we will be at the Apex campus in order to have additional space,” said Jessica Benninghoff, Special Needs Ministry Director at Hope Community Church.
The Tim Tebow Foundation estimates that 90,000 guests will attend a Night to Shine this year. Hope Community anticipates hosting 350 prom-goers but has space for 400.
“The majority of our guests are from the community,” Benninghoff said. “This is an incredible outreach opportunity.”
Tim Tebow is the Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL star-turned-baseball player who is heading to Spring Training next week with the New York Mets. He created his foundation to spread faith, hope and love, especially to children in need.
His ministries include W15H Wish, which fulfills the dreams of children with serious illnesses who want to meet him. The foundation is also behind the Tebow Cure Hospital located in the Philippines, where Tebow was born when his parents were serving as missionaries.
Four years ago, Tebow heard about a church that hosted a special needs prom and immediately decided to grow it as a movement. The participants are 14 years and older, they walk a red carpet as they arrive at the dance and they are greeted by cheering crowds.
There is music and food and fellowship and fun during the evening, and at the end of the night each person is crowned King or Queen of the prom. Tebow has said it’s designed to be an evening that “truly celebrates each young person and emphasizes they are special in the eyes of God.”
Making the night magical takes committed volunteers at each location.
“We have 670-plus volunteers serving with us from set-up, in-event volunteers and tear down,” Benninghoff said.
The Tebow Foundation estimates that more than 175,000 volunteers will make a Night to Shine a night to remember.
Tebow himself calls prom night his favorite night of the year. He plans to attend Night to Shine at one location but he’s keeping that location a secret so that he can pull off a huge surprise.
This story was originally published February 9, 2018 at 11:03 AM with the headline "Tim Tebow’s Night to Shine prom will be a night these kids will never forget."