Yellowknife teen recognized for work supporting autistic child in dance class
It’s a partnership that’s lasted three years, and at 14 years old, Taylor Paddon said she gets a lot out of supporting eight-year-old Eddie Johnson in his dance class.
“I feel like I’ve just become a better person from working with him,” Paddon said.
The feeling appears to be mutual.
Eddie’s mom, Katie Johnson, nominated Paddon for the Northwest Territories Disabilities Council’s Judith Sharp Memorial Community Champion Award. Paddon was presented with her plaque at the Accessibility Impact Awards on May 22.
Paddon said she found out that she was nominated in the weeks before the awards were handed out.
“It felt really great,” Paddon said.
“It means a lot that his mom nominated me for it.”
Johnson said Paddon really deserved the recognition because she has gone above and beyond for years.
“I also think that highlighting such a young leader is really important to help get other folks interested in also being a leader in inclusion and accessibility,” she said.
In a statement, Denise McKee, CEO of the Northwest Territories Disabilities Council said the organization was honoured to recognize Paddon with the award.
“Taylor not only represents the spirit of inclusion, but she has also done so through selfless, self-initiated actions,” he said. “Taylor is an example and inspiration for social justice and equity.”
Johnson said her son was in his third year of dance when Paddon began volunteering as a Leader in Training, or LIT, in his Kinder Acro class.
“The two of them quickly bonded, and she started picking up on cues and supports for him,” Johnson said.
After that first year, Paddon said she was approached to continue as an LIT in Eddie’s class, with a focus on supporting Eddie. They are wrapping up their third season together at Bella Dance Academy.
“I love working with Eddie, and I love going on stage with him because it makes me really happy to see him on stage,” Paddon said.
For Eddie’s family, Paddon’s support goes a long way to help their youngster participate in activities he enjoys.
“Eddie is autistic; he started dancing with Taylor right around the time that we had his formal diagnosis,” Johnson said. “We were really scrambling to find extracurricular things that could be supportive for him.”
Johnson said the family didn’t ask for the extra support from the dance studio, but the added help has worked well.
Not many activities for youth with autism, Johnson says
“For a small business that is trying to get by and have an impact in the community, for them to do that without us even asking and to constantly check in with us around what supports he needs …has been really great to see,” Johnson said.
Johnson said the family noticed signs of autistic traits in Eddie during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We operated from the assumption that he was autistic from the time he was about four years old,” Johnson said. “Then it took us until about when he was five and a half to go to the Glenrose Hospital in Edmonton to get his diagnosis.”
In Yellowknife, Johnson said there aren’t a lot of extra services, and Eddie aged out of support for preschool patients with autism when he turned six. He gets some support in his school and through remote services his parents pay for out of pocket.
“[There’s] not really any extracurricular activities except for Special Olympics, which is incredible, and then small groups like Bella Dance trying to make it work as well,” Johnson said.
“He loves tumbling, doing somersaults, cartwheels, all of that,” Johnson said. “Doing acro dance has been a really great mix of him getting to do those more gymnastic physical skills in a smaller, more contained class.”
With Paddon in class with him, Johnson said Eddie’s skills have improved.
“It’s been really great to see how much she has grown as a leader, and everything that she has learned and developed hasn’t been from an adult teaching her,” Johnson said. “But she’s always looking to learn.”
Paddon said she isn’t sure whether her work with Eddie will translate into a career in the future, but she acknowledged she’s gaining a lot of experience.
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