A chance to compete at a world championship awaits some local students if they can raise the money to make the trip.

The DI Deetectives, a team of four 1st and 5th graders from Hornung Elementary and Maltby Intermediate, placed third at the Michigan Destination Imagination State Tournament on April 13th at Michigan State University. They competed in the Scientific challenge of Medical Mystery against 11 other teams from across the state. By placing third, they have earned the opportunity to compete for Team Michigan at the 2019 Destination Imagination Global Finals in Kansas City May 22nd through the 25th.

Except for one returning team-member, this Elementary Level team was brand new to Destination Imagination. The students on the team are: Malakai Kilduff, Zoe Kilduff, Spencer Sanders and Drew Smith. The team managers are T.J. and Alison Smith. The DI Deetectives were required to research a medical condition, exhibit symptoms, design and build a device called a “Sympt-o-matic” which used technical methods to show the effects of the medical mystery on the human body. The team then incorporated “Double Vision” through blocking and props during their challenge presentation so that one action was presented from two different perspectives.

Alison Smith reflected on the win, “As parents and team managers, we had prepared the kids for the stiff competition at States. Many school districts have the benefit of years of experience in Destination Imagination and our team had started late compared to others. The kid’s effort, research, teamwork and creativity paid off when their team name was announced in third place. We are so proud to represent Brighton in an international academic competition at Global Finals. Brighton Area Schools has produced Destination Imagination teams for two years now and I hope the program grows exponentially.”

The team will need help funding their trip to Kansas City. They will be holding a few fundraisers; the first is a fundraising dinner at MOD Pizza on Grand River in Brighton today, Monday May 6th from 4 to 8pm during which MOD will donate 20% of their proceeds to Destination Imagination. The team has also secured Saturday evening, May 18th, at Chipotle on Grand River in Brighton. For that event, 33% of proceeds will be donated to Destination Imagination.

Alternatively, you can donate or sponsor the team directly via their GoFundMe page through the link below. (JK)