Articles from December 2019

Sudden death playoff ends with Sioux City Unified pair winning first-ever Regional Special Olympics Unified Golf Tournament at Wedgewood Cove Golf Club in Albert Lea, Minnesota on July 14.

Jesse Pease, Sioux City Knight’s athlete, and brother, Jason Pease went into the final hole of play having led the whole tournament.  During the play of the final hole, the Pease brothers found themselves trailing for the first time.  The pair was able to save par putting them into a sudden death match against a Minnesota pair.  The match ended with the Pease brothers making par and winning the match, and ultimately the tournament.

Keith Pease, father of Jesse and Jason, shared, “This was truly an outstanding event; we found it rewarding to witness the respect athletes had for each other’s abilities and accomplishments.”

The two day Special Olympics Unified match play tournament featured more than 10 Unified pairs from Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and Wisconsin.  A Unified pair combines individuals with and without intellectual disabilities to compete on the same team allowing both the athlete and partner to grow on and off the competition field.  Unified sports promote inclusion and friendship for all.

 

This past week Special Olympics Iowa held the first annual Youth Summit which brought together students from across the state to discuss inclusion and develop action plans that they can take back to their local communities.  The summit had 65 attendees ranging from 7^th graders to juniors in high school.  The schools that sent students to the summit were East High School, Goodrell Middle School, Hoover High School, IKM-Manning Schools, North Scott Junior High, Robert Blue Middle School, Roosevelt High School, Spencer High School, Urbandale High School, Wayne Community High School and Harlan Community Schools.

The event tackled the topics of motivating and empowering others, accountability, leadership and Unified sports.  Participants also participated in a Hy-Vee KidsFit workshop and capped the day off with a pool party.

“It was wonderful seeing so many youth leaders come together to share ideas and stories about the Unified Generation and to learn more about how the simple concept of inclusion can change the culture of an entire school,” shared Bryan Coffey, Special Olympics Iowa Director of Unified Programs.

All participants were students at Unified Champions Schools, schools that bring together students with and without intellectual disabilities through education, sports and youth leadership to provide them with the knowledge, attitudes and skills necessary to create and sustain school communities that promote acceptance and respect.

We have teamed up with Casey’s General Store and Coca-Cola for the month of June!  When you stop by your local Casey’s store during the month of June, you will be able to “round up” for Special Olympics Iowa. This means that you will have the opportunity to round up your total as a donation to Special Olympics Iowa. 10 cents will also be donated when individuals buy a pizza slice and a 20 oz. Coca-Cola drink for $4.

 

Casey’s General Store and Coca-Cola have been longtime supporters of Special Olympics Iowa and the Inclusion Revolution. Their generosity and support helps us to provide sports training and athletic competition to over 16,000 Special Olympics Iowa athletes and Unified partners.

By: Lexxi O’Brien

The University of Iowa took a Unified team to the NIRSA basketball championships in Wichita, Kansas. The team went face-to-face with competitors across the nation including Louisville, Eastern Washington University and Oregon. Iowa ended up 1-2 at the end of the tournament. The University of Iowa was one of 12 teams in the nation to be selected to participate in the Unified Division.

The team practiced for the duration of 6 weeks, during and following the University’s regular Unified basketball intramural season. To prepare for the tournament, The University of Iowa played an exhibition game against St. Ambrose University’s Unified intramural championship team! Unified intramurals at Iowa started with flag football in 2017 and has since progressed to add volleyball and basketball. Ongoing support from the recreational services department and our Unified partners makes this program at Iowa thrive.