Variety Scholarships are helping Kiwi kids reach their dreams with $5000 scholarships to 21 talented kids. They include Shakti Krishnan.
Dubbed a dare devil on a snowboard, a champ around a table tennis table and a talented musician, Shakti,14, is no conventional teenager; he is a star in the Paralympic world.
The Hamilton teenager has spina bifida, which confines him to a wheelchair, but that doesn't stop him from being a gold, silver and bronze medallist in various competitions nationally and in Australia.
"I love snowboarding - the thrill, getting up in the morning really early, going up the mountain, seeing all the fresh snow and just going for it. The thrill of not knowing what is going to happen; gravity isn't something you can control."
Para-snowboarding for two years, Shakti uses a mono ski - a padded bucket seat with a motorcycle shock on the bottom.
"So instead of knees which I can't use, I use that. I use one ski on the bottom and balance crutches with little ski tips on the end too," he says.
"As part of the school's PE curriculum we had to do skiing, I didn't know what I was going to do, the principal showed me the sport, I didn't even know skiing existed for people like me."
He picked it up quickly but spent some time in happy valley learning the basics, now he can go to the top, easily, he says.
Shakti came third in the paralympic snowboarding world cup in Wanaka last year.
"I have almost killed myself so many times."
After a major surgery he found table tennis - he wanted something less physical than normal tennis - and has stuck with it ever since.
Shakti has won a gold medal in the Paralympics National Championship table tennis, singles and doubles, a gold medal 2010 NZ Paralympic table tennis champs, and a silver medal and bronze medal at the Australian National champs .
He plays abled bodied table tennis at school too. "It really helps me, able bodied players take no mercy, they are a lot harder to play," he says.
"Since I started table tennis, it was my big dream to be the national champion. I would always beat everyone except this one man John, no matter where I went, what competitions, he would always stop me winning. Last year in the Paralympic nationals, it was me and him, we had each won three sets each and it got down to advantage. I won by two points. It was the most intense moment ever. I was so happy."
Shakti's mother Santhriga said that match was thrilling.
"I didn't take any pictures or video because the game was like a rugby final, everyone was glued to it. The whole stadium was so quiet concentrating," she said.
Shakti aims to get into world tournaments in the development squad for table tennis and skiing.
"My parents are the ones that keep me going and give me the motivation to do things. My mum drives me everywhere at 6am, no matter what it is."
It's all seasonal, he says. In a busy year, Shakti would do athletics from January to march. April is table tennis, June is tennis, then skiing in winter and then music at the end of the year.
"I have no idea how I do it all. When you are that busy you just don't notice."
Because of a surgery recently, Shakti is taking it easy the rest of the year, which he says is disappointing because the huge amount of snow on the mountains at the moment.
Shakti is also really into music, he plays the piano, guitar and the violin. He is in the Hillcrest High School Scat Choir and the Variety voices.
The variety scholarship was approved this year, their plan is to go to state Colorado in December. It has great facilities; special training for disabled skiers and Shakti will get to see professional para-snowboarders there too.
"I know my sports will take me somewhere, but they will only take me somewhere for so long. I also have my music and a social life. I have lots of plans."