The Special Gifts Ministry at Geyer Springs First Baptist Church hosts a monthly Parents Night Out for children with special needs, as well as a variety of other social and spiritual activities for the differently-abled.

It’s hard to get on the wrong side of Bekka Wilkerson, a Saline County native with a robust laugh and a heart for serving others. But if there’s one thing that puts an edge on her voice, it’s how little has changed when it comes to accepting people with physical or mental challenges including, sadly, among those in the Sunday pews. “Our number one goal is to open the doors of the church and tell all people, ‘We love you and we want you here,’” she says. “That’s a little bit difficult for some congregations to accept. But we continue to pound on those doors.”

For the past eight years, Wilkerson has channelled her energies for special needs (or as Wilkerson puts it, “differently-abled”) populations into Special Gifts Ministry at Geyer Springs First Baptist Church in Little Rock. “This ministry is unique, it’s one of a kind,” says Wilkerson, who spends her days as a cancer clinical trial coordinator at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS). “These are people who are used to being told, ‘No’ as in ‘No, you can’t go,’ or ‘No, you can’t participate.’ We designed our ministry to say, ‘Yes.’”

The ministry serves people of all ages and their families with a variety of activities. Younger children are provided an inclusive envrionment and a self-contained classroom wherein they are prepared for what they can expect in a typical school classroom. Adult participants also utilize the classroom for Sunday school. In addition, the ministry includes a slate of social and faith-based activities and outings. Things that many people may take for granted—such as the chance to attend Vacation Bible School or Summer Camp, to have a holiday celebration or a monthly outing for young adults—are provided in a safe and supervised environment by Special Gifts Ministry.

As well, there are activities that cannot be fully appreciated unless one is the parent of a special needs child, such as respite services that give parents some time off one night per month. “Think how difficult it is for parents,” Wilkerson says. “If you look at a lot of the outings that are offered for children and adults, there are so many activities that have a tendency to over-stimulate a differently-abled child, not to mention the level of bullying and just an overall lack of understanding. It really takes a lot.”

The Special Gifts Ministry at Geyer Springs First Baptist Church hosts a monthly Parents Night Out for children with special needs, as well as a variety of other social and spiritual activities for the differently-abled.

This February, the ministry celebrated its biggest event to date, the first Night to Shine Prom for adults with special needs. The event gave participants the chance to experience a prom formal that most would not have had otherwise. The event is a particular point of pride for Wilkerson, starting with its funding. Night to Shine was underwritten by a grant from the Tim Tebow Foundation, one of only 46 programs around the world to receive the funds. Another milestone was the level of volunteer support— about 10 times more than the second largest of Special Gifts’ events and 20 times more than that for a routine activity. Most of the time, it’s just Wilkerson, her husband Speedy and her three stepchildren. “It’s a labor of love,” she says, laughing. “Our volunteers are small in number, but we’re mighty!”

Given this level of enthusiasm and dedication, it might be assumed Wilkerson has a distinct tie-in with Special Gifts, such as a child or other family member with special needs. While that is not the case, that doesn’t mean the ministry is any less personal. “The issues facing special needs individuals have always been near and dear to me,” she says. “I guess I have a skewed perspective, because I truly believe that this is how God talks to me. I figure that someone has to do it; it might as well be me.”

The Special Gifts program has come a long way in eight years, and activities now draw children and adults from all over the state. It’s more common now for other churches to partner with Wilkerson in order to pull off events and outings, and it gives her hope that more congregations will support special needs ministries of their own. “We’ve made a lot of strides, but I don’t want to be selfish with this,” she says. “I’d love to see all churches have such a ministry, because it’s what God calls us to do. It’s what Jesus did. You didn’t see him hanging out with the Bill Gates of Jerusalem. He was visiting the lame and hanging out with the people who were shunned by society.”