2/14/2007

Darius Goes West

Mike surprised me with an amazing weekend in Santa Barbara to celebrate our three year anniversary. When we got there, we both got a pleasant surprise: The Santa Barbara Film Festival was going on. http://www.sbiff.org/ We decided we should catch a movie so we chose a film that peeked our interest. It is called Darius Goes West. http://www.dariusgoeswest.com/ The movie is a documentary about a young man who has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). DMD is a fatal genetic disorder. Those who have it usually die in their teens or early twenties. There is no cure. Darius is a young man, fifteen at the time of making this movie, who despite his health problems maintains a sense of humor and a positive outlook on life. In the summer of 2005, a group of Darius' buddies (college age) decide to travel west with two goals: 1. To test how wheelchair accessible the US is and 2. To make it to LA where MTV's show "Pimp my Ride" is filmed in the hopes of getting Darius' wheelchair 'pimped' to raise awareness for DMD. Darius had never left his home in Athens, Georgia. This group of friends first took him to not just see the ocean and beach for the first time, but to swim in Panama City. They then traveled through St. Louis, the Grand Canyon, New Orleans, Las Vegas, etc. On the way he experienced many amazing adventures and firsts. You must see this movie. I won't tell you how it ended, but I will say this: You will leave encouraged. These young men who made this dream a reality for Darius deserve a standing ovation. With pure hearts and concern for another person, they embarked on an adventure that changed the life of Darius, but more than that will touch anyone who takes the time to watch it. It is amazing what people can accomplish (young or old) when they think first about someone other than themselves. McFaddens give the movie two thumbs up.

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