Articles in Coaches

By Stephanie Kocer

(SOIA coach Nicole Vetter accepts her Inspiring Coach of the Year award from Brooks Running)

As Special Olympics Iowa (SOIA) athletes prepare to head to Seattle for the 2018 USA Games July 1-6 at the University of Washington campus, coach Nicole Vetter of Council Bluffs is just returning from Seattle, where she was honored by Brooks Running with the Inspiring Coach of the Year award.

Vetter has been a teacher and coach for 22 years in Council Bluffs. She started her career as a special education teacher before transitioning into teaching physical education and coaching the Thomas Jefferson High School track team. Now she feels like she gets the best of both worlds. “I love getting to know that population of students,” says Vetter. “I get to help both Special Olympic athletes and high school students, which is the best of both worlds.”

In honor of the 2018 USA Games, Brooks Running, which is headquartered in Seattle, selected two track & field coaches from across the nation and awarded them with the Inspiring Coach of the Year award. The winner receives a trophy, a $10,000 grant for Brooks performance running gear, and $2,500 to their team’s athletic department for team expenses. …

By Emma Finn

Ray Strekal will be attending the Special Olympics USA Games this July in Seattle, Washington as the Special Olympics Iowa (SOIA) Assistant Head of Delegation. This isn’t his first time volunteering at the Games, however. He has been to every USA Games. He even attend the original USA Games held in Ames, Iowa in 2006.

Strekal is excited to return to the USA Games this July. He explained how he has made many friendships over the years and how seeing people again is always a fun experience.

“It is always good to meet people at the USA Games from different states. It’s good for us to hear about each areas successes and problems while running events so we can learn some things and take that advice back with us,” says Strekal.  …

By Bree Jacoba 

SOIA’s Basketball Skills competitions help teach athletes basic skills of the game, while preparing them to compete at the state level.

For basketball skills, individuals compete in three events: Target Pass, 10 Meter Dribble and Spot Shot.

In the target pass event, a square is marked both on the wall and on the floor. The athlete must stand within the square marked on the floor and try to get the ball to hit inside the ball on the wall. In the 10-meter event, the athlete begins from behind the start line and between the cones and starts moving and dribbling when the official signals. They must cross the finish line between the cones and must pick up the basketball to stop the clock. If the athlete loses control of the ball, the clock will continue to run until the ball is recovered. In the spot shot event, there are six spots that are marked on the floor around a basketball hoop and the athlete has two attempts from each of the six spots to make a basket. …

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)

…

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).

…

Special Olympics Iowa honored its Outstanding Athlete, Coach and Family of the Year award winners during the Summer Games Opening Ceremonies presented by Hy-Vee May 25 at Iowa State University’s Hilton Coliseum. The Scott Bryant Unsung Hero Award was also presented to recognize an individual dedicated to the Law Enforcement Torch Run program.  …

On Saturday, June 17, 2017 the Iowa Barnstormers will be hosting the Sioux Falls Storm for their regular season finale. The Iowa Barnstormers are offering discounted tickets to any Special Olympians and their families for a fun night of Barnstormers football! Discounted tickets are only available for purchase at this link or by calling Chase Kruckemeyer at 515-564-8458.

This discount is NOT available for walk ups the day of the game. If you have any questions call 515-564-8458 for more details.

Pricing:
200 Ends/ 200 Sides: $11

Tickets ordered after June 10 will be available for pick up in the Iowa Barnstormers front office the week prior to the game or at Will Call located at the Wells Fargo Arena ticket office the night of the game.

We look forward to seeing you at the game!

MORE INFO

By: Chelsey Kimmel-Kendrick

“I’m a real humble person,” a line Dee Sturgeon knows all too well. She has been a volunteer for more than 25 years as an events coordinator for American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life event, and has been a coach for Special Olympics Iowa for more than 30 years. Sturgeon doesn’t do it for the recognition though. She does it to inspire others.

“I have the time,” she says. “I just think that it’s the right thing to do; Volunteers can inspire others to do it.”

And that she did. Sturgeon is also an instructional assistant for students with special needs, in addition to her volunteer work. She says her classroom kids were motivated by her work. For their middle school Spread the Word to End the Word® campaign, they offered to help. Some of the kids volunteered to make PSAs to inform the media about the event; others wrote speeches to share — all of which, Sturgeon says, were attributed to her volunteerism.

“It’s kind of cool to see the kids get involved because I get involved,” she says. …