News

By Stephanie Kocer

When fall brings cooler weather and changing colors it can only mean one thing; football season. The Special Olympics flag football team from Cedar Rapids has been preparing for their season for weeks, but it won’t end after Special Olympics Iowa’s Flag Football is over in October.

The team will continue to practice every week into next July to prepare for the 2018 Special Olympics USA Games in Seattle, Washington, where they’ll represent Iowa as they compete against other flag football teams for the gold.

From July 1-6, 2018 – more than 4,000 Special Olympics athletes and coaches from all 50 states and the District of Columbia will gather in Seattle to compete before tens of thousands of spectators and volunteers. The 2018 USA Games will showcase the limitless talents of people with intellectual disabilities while promoting the barrier-breaking power of sport to promote inclusion and acceptance. Among those 4,000 athletes and coaches will be 34 Iowa athletes, who will compete in athletics, flag football, powerlifting, swimming, tennis, Unified bocce and Unified bowling.

To ready themselves for USA Games, the football team is focusing on perfecting their plays and building their relationships with teammates. “I’m looking forward to good sportsmanship. If you make mistakes, you make mistakes,” says athlete Paul White. He and his brother, Robbie, will be going to USA Games for the first time with the football team. They’re excited to have the opportunity to play on a national scale. “We’re going to cheer on other teams when we’re not playing and we’re going to be excited to play,” says Paul. …

Special Olympics Iowa would like to introduce its new Volunteer Director Elin Phipps!

Before taking on the full-time position of Volunteer Director, Phipps was a volunteer coordinator intern with SOIA, helping with volunteers for Summer Games. Originally from Boone, Iowa, Phipps attended Central College where she majored in Communication Studies- Mass Communication & Journalism. She also ran track and cross country for the Central Dutch.

During college Phipps worked with several nonprofits, including Young Life, and volunteered with Amanda the Panda and Kiwanis Miracle Baseball League. She has also had several jobs relating to athletics such as being a swim instructor and life guard.

Phipps is excited to start working with the athletes of SOIA. “By far the most exciting aspect I am looking forward to at Special Olympics Iowa is working with the athletes at events and getting to know them personally.  I am also eager to learn more about how Special Olympics impacts persons with special needs all over the world.” …

Special Olympics Iowa is excited to announce the Dubuque Challenge Day will return this year to Loras College in Dubuque. The Challenge Day will take place at the college’s Activity and Wellness Center on Friday, October 20, 2017. The day will kick-off with an opening ceremony at 9:30 a.m., with sports activities starting at 10:00 a.m. 

Challenge Days are a one-day event designed specifically for the severe and profound population of Iowa as well as our aging population. Because of the need to offer more activities for these individuals, it has been a goal of Special Olympics Iowa to give these athletes opportunities to compete in activities that mirror the 23 Olympic-style sports SOIA offers.  …

On Friday, November 10, Johnston-Grimes Metropolitan Fire Department Association and Johnston Professional Firefighters Local 4835 will host the annaul Firefighters’ Ball at Stoney Creek Inn in Johnston. Special Olympics Iowa is one of three charities chosen to receive proceeds from the event.

The charitable evening will feature hors d’oeuvres, special guests, a cash bar, dancing, silent auction, raffles and a photo booth.

The event cost is $40 per person or $70 per couple. Tickets are limited to 300 guests and are available to the public until Friday, October 20.

To purchase tickets please contact Ginger at jgmfdfirefightersball@gmail.com or 515-276-5182.

Event Poster

The Global Messenger Workshop will be December 1-2, 2017 at the state office in Grimes.

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When Hurricane Harvey hit last month Alicia Porter knew she couldn’t sit on the sidelines and watch. The Special Olympics Iowa coach had an important connection to Houston; her assistant coach, Barb Hottman is originally from the city.

Hottman, a former special education teacher from Houston has a daughter living in Houston and she immediately wanted to go and see firsthand how her and all of her friends were really doing.

“Through phone calls we began to realize that these people were living on cans of soup and even K-rations. We knew that she [Hottman] could not go empty-handed,” Porter said. Team Porter began reaching out to close friends and relatives, asking for donations of food and paper supplies.  With an outpouring of support, a thousand dollars worth of food and supplies were donated and sent with Hottman to bring to Houston. …

Starting October 1, 2017 Special Olympics will require all athletes joining Special Olympics Iowa to complete newly updated Release and Medical Forms.

These new forms will take the place of the Physical and Consent Forms that SOIA required athletes to fill out in the past. Any athlete with a current Physical and Consent Form on file will NOT need to renew with the new forms until their current physical expires.

Before athletes can begin competition in SOIA, they must submit the following forms:

• Athlete Information Form (renewed every 3 years)
• Participant Release Form
• Medical Forms
  • Health History
  • Physical Exam (renewed every 3 years)
  • Referral Form (if required)

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Special Olympics Iowa would like to welcome the newest member of the state office team, Office Administrator Tricia Wheeler!

Wheeler started with SOIA in August to provide administrative support and oversee general office operations. Wheeler previously worked in health care before coming to SOIA, but she is no stranger to the organization, serving as a volunteer at past SOIA events. Originally from the Cedar Rapids area, Wheeler attended Kirkwood Community College, Cornell College, and AIB College of Business. She now lives in the Des Moines area with her daughter, who is a full-time college student.

In her free time, Wheeler works with Forte International Exchange Association, where she works with volunteer host families as they except exchange students into their home. Wheeler has even hosted exchange students in her own home before.

Wheeler is excited about her new position with SOIA and looks forward to the upcoming events in the fall. “I look forward to meeting new people and hope to be a positive addition to the already great team. I have volunteered in the past and look forward to being a cheerleader at events.”

Welcome, Tricia!

We are pleased to inform you that the 2017-2018 Coaches’ Guide is completed and available on our website. The updated guide is an easy to use, comprehensive resource for delegation managers and coaches.

The 2017-2018 Coaches’ Guide was updated in July 2017 and is good for one year. This version of the guide contains important updates on policies and forms. All changes are highlighted in blue in the guide.

See the Coaches’ Guide

For more information, contact:
Sally Briggs, Program Administrative Assistant
515-986-5520

From Special Olympics North America: 

Special Olympics values the safety of all athletes and their use of appropriate protective equipment. This memo is to advise Special Olympics Programs on new FIS standards for alpine ski helmets.

In order to improve safety, the USSA Alpine Sports Committee has confirmed that the regulations requiring the use of helmets for Giant Slalom, Super-G and Downhill that meet new FIS standards will be mandatory for all competitors in the 2016-2017 season. Special Olympics Sports recently adopted these requirements.

The new FIS helmet certification standards will be phased In during the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 seasons. (USSA “Ski Helmet Regulations” are available on the USSA web site at http://ussa.org/alpine-programs/masters/rules).

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