Among the 'Cool Kids,' a love story

Aug. 19—In a sea of vibrant red leather, only a few seats in the theater are occupied. The bright multicolored movie lights reflect on the faces of the lone patrons.

A couple sits in two of the four occupied seats. Down the row are their mothers, both invested in the movie.

As the couple's hands intertwine, the two rest their heads against one another. After a few scenes pass, the couple looks at each other, beaming. They are happy. It's a Tuesday. It's date day.

Meeting at Walmart

On a Tuesday in March 2022, Leslie Poe browsed the cheese department with her son, Matt Poe, 31, under the white fluorescent lights in Walmart.

At the same Walmart, Amy Masser perused items in a nearby aisle.

As Matt stood by the shopping cart, he watched as Amy emerged from the aisle next to him. Matt had been known to greet everyone and this instance proved no differently.

He walked up to Amy, a stranger at the time, and offered a lively hello. Amy enthusiastically returned the greeting. After some small talk with Matt, Amy noticed Leslie and immediately introduced herself.

Like Matt, Amy explained, her daughter is also a person with Down syndrome and is around the same age as him. Amy said she showed the "cutest picture she could find" on her phone of her daughter, Katie Masser, 27, to Leslie and Matt.

Amy then invited them to a dance class she and her daughter attended together on Thursdays. The class, called the Special Needs Dance Party, is held through Sharon's School of Dance in Walkersville, and offers a 30-minute timeframe where people with special needs can dance around to lively music with peers.

After Amy extended the invitation, the trio conversed for a little while longer, then went their separate ways.

The dance party that coming Thursday would be Matt and Katie's first official date, and soon afterwards, the start of their relationship.

Matt and Katie

Matt and Katie have enjoyed being with each other since the moment they met.

The two immediately connected after their initial meeting. Matt was very friendly toward Katie. The two danced together with colorful pom-poms and other fun props throughout the entire class.

Afterward, the group went to lunch at a nearby Chick-fil-A. While the four sat together in a little booth munching on their chicken entrees and fries, Matt announced to the table that Katie was his girlfriend.

Leslie looked at him and said that he could not claim Katie as his girlfriend. Katie had to be asked first.

"So, I looked at Katie and I go, 'Katie, do you want to be Matt's girlfriend?' And she's like, 'Yes,'" Amy said with a chuckle.

After the relationship became official, the four began spending more time together. Now, they see each other four to six times a week on average. The time spent together has even extended to holidays and vacations. The four recently returned from a trip to Morocco.

Aside from the dance class, Tuesdays became their designated date days. Amy and Leslie chaperone Matt and Katie on dates, which include anything from going to the movies, going out to eat, or running errands together.

Matt shows his love to Katie in various ways. His romantic gestures toward Katie may include spinning her around on the dance floor, giving her affectionate hugs, and always letting Katie know that he really loves her.

The first time Matt proposed to Katie, it was as they were singing along to the song "Love is an Open Door" from the movie "Frozen."

In the song, one character, Anna, asks, "Can I say something crazy? Will you marry me?" In response, the other character, Hans, says, "Can I say something even crazier? Yes."

Matt channels Anna whenever he asks Katie to marry him. Katie channels Hans when she says yes.

This romantic exchange started last November and has been repeated multiple times. Whenever someone asks about Katie's ring, or brings up the engagement, Matt will reenact the "Frozen" exchange to his fiancee, dancing with her and proposing all over again.

"I love when she dances with me," Matt said.

Katie has misplaced Matt's engagement ring a few times, but always finds it. Amy insisted on a $20 limit on the purchase of the ring, knowing that Katie might lose track of it.

While Matt and Katie are currently engaged, their families are not sure if a marriage is possible.

Amy and Leslie are uncertain whether an official marriage would affect the government benefits for both Matt and Katie. Amy and Leslie are considering either an unofficial commitment ceremony or engagement party to celebrate the couple at some point.

Regardless, the engagement is a symbol of the romantic connection between Matt and Katie.

The community recognizes this bond, as well.

Last March, in the midst of their one-year anniversary, Matt and Katie won The Frederick News-Post's Cutest Couple photo contest out of 193 total entries. The two received the recognition after members of the community voted for a photo of them embracing in matching bowling shirts.

Matt and Katie are the couple, but their families have been close, too. Both Amy and Leslie are currently single parents. Amy is divorced and Leslie is widowed.

Through chaperoning their children on dates and spending quality time together, Amy and Leslie have become great friends.

Amy and Leslie have also noticed a change in their children through their relationship. Both Matt and Katie "get along better than anyone" they know and truly love being together, Leslie said.

"I think sometimes — I don't like to get corny — but the stars kind of aligned," Leslie said.

The community

The families' cohesion extends into the community.

Both Matt and Katie are part of self-directed services in Frederick.

With self-directed services, Amy and Leslie are in control of Matt and Katie's budgets, versus going through a program.

The Maryland Department of Health Developmental Disabilities Administration provides money to families of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Families can choose self-directed services, which allow them more flexibility in how to use that money and which services and activities they want.

According to the Developmental Disabilities Administration website, the option of self-directed services pertains to "participants, legal guardians, or their designated representatives who wish to exercise more choice, control, and authority over their supports."

"It gives me more control," Amy said. "I know where my daughter is because I'm right there with her."

Prior to joining self-directed services, both Matt and Katie were involved in various programs designated for people with special needs.

Matt and Leslie previously lived in Montgomery County, where Matt was involved with a program.

When the two moved to Frederick in February 2020, pandemic shutdowns occurred just a few weeks later. Matt then had to rely on virtual interactions through Zoom, which was not ideal, Leslie said.

Amy felt unhappy with many of the programs available for her daughter in Frederick. She felt they lacked the resources and opportunities available for her daughter, even prior to the pandemic.

Amy then decided to take Katie out of the programs and they went on their own outings together. While the outings were fun, Katie recognized there was still somesthing missing.

As the shutdowns were lifted, Katie explained to her mother that this was the time to meet more people.

"She definitely was saying, 'I want my own friends, I want my own boyfriend, I want my own life,'" Amy said.

Amy then began finding activities for her daughter to participate in.

They starting going to a bowling night on Mondays for people in the special needs community to come together and have fun. This has now become a weekly event for them.

Amy also learned about the Special Needs Dance Party held by Sharon's School of Dance and the two began attending.

The dance class, founded by Sharon Grimet, owner of Sharon's School of Dance, started a few years ago with just a few people at the studio space on West Frederick Street in Walkersville.

Grimet, who has a daughter with cerebral palsy, started the class to provide a space for parents and their children to support each other. As word about the class spread, more people joined.

Now, there are over 50 participants active in the class, with attendance numbers ranging each week. The dance party eventually moved to a space in the Walkersville Volunteer Rescue Company to accommodate the larger class size.

Support system

The growth of the community extends beyond the dance class, as well.

On March 21, 2022 — coincidentally, it was World Down Syndrome Day — Amy created a Facebook page called "Frederick Self-Directed Services."

According to the page summary, the group was created for "clients, parents, and support staff of special needs adults living in Frederick, MD who have opted for DDA self-directed services or who are considering it, as well as parents and support staff of special needs adults who are looking for weekly social opportunities with their peers who have not opted for self-directed services."

The group now includes over 600 members, and is continuing to grow. Other counties, such as Howard and Washington, have even made their own self-directed pages after finding Frederick's page.

Some of the posts in the Frederick Facebook group may include ideas for activities or volunteer opportunities, reminders about upcoming events, or other means of support.

According to Amy and Leslie, the Facebook group has also provided a great support system for the moms.

"If it wasn't for all the moms, I don't think any of us would know what we were doing," said Amy White, mother of Katherine White, one of the class participants, who is a friend of Matt and Katie's. "It takes a village to have so much fun with all these kids."

The various outings and activities have offered a space for people with special needs to spend time with friends and members of the community.

Amy chose the name "Cool Kids," for any person with special needs, and the name quickly spread to the group. Their unofficial theme song, "Cool Kids" by Echosmith, will usually play in the class as the dancers spin around with smiling faces.

"I love seeing everybody and getting to know people," said Sarah Hickman, a fellow "Cool Kid."

"I love dancing with all my friends," Katie said. "I love them so much."

Dance Party tradition

As the week's Special Needs Dance Party draws to a close, Sharon Grimet brings out the final prop for the dance party participants. Attendees enthusiastically form a circle as Grimet unravels a large, colorful parachute across the room.

While the rest of the group takes hold of the parachute, Matt and Katie quickly slide underneath, then lie on the floor next to each other. Watching the parachute move from below has become a weekly tradition for the couple.

Lively music starts to play through the speakers. Their fellow "Cool Kids" begin walking around the room while still holding onto the parachute.

Surrounded by their circle of friends, Matt and Katie watch as the vivid fabric waves above them.

The music is winding down, signifying the end of another class.

Before they pack up the parachute and go, Matt and Katie turn to each other.

Still lying down, Matt leans over and gives Katie a kiss.