A perfect partnership
Special Olympics Pennsylvania partners with local Y organizations
One of the country’s most well-known nonprofits devoted to nurturing active lifestyles and an organization that champions the potential of individuals with disabilities have officially aligned their similar missions into a mutually beneficial relationship.
Special Olympics Pennsylvania (SOPA) and three area Y organizations — Philadelphia Freedom Valley YMCA, YMCA of Greater Brandywine and the YMCA of York and York County — have created increased fitness and training opportunities for athletes with intellectual disabilities by linking athletes to 27 YMCA facilities across the Philadelphia region.
The partnership will help take the edge off the Special Olympics’ ongoing struggle to locate suitable locations to train athletes and host local competitions, noted Special Olympics Montgomery County manager Scott Otterbein.
“As the county manager I collaborate with many school districts, public parks and companies to find suitable space for our Special Olympics practices,” Otterbein said. “The demand for facilities has grown in recent years with many schools not able to provide gym space to all the community groups and clubs. With this partnership, the Freedom Valley Y locations will improve our access to high quality facilities and gives more options in meeting our needs. With 19 sports throughout the county the Ys are an ideal partner to help us continue serving our Special Olympics athletes.”
Special Olympics Montgomery County is accredited as one of more than 50 local programs operating under Special Olympics Pennsylvania (SOPA), which in turn operates under the authority of Special Olympics, Inc.
Special Olympics Montgomery County, which is home to more than 1,500 athletes a year, offers training and competition for individuals with intellectual disabilities such as Down syndrome, Autism Spectrum Disorder and Fragile X Syndrome, from age 7 to seniors, in several sports at various venues all over the county, including Spring Mountain Ski Area, Boyertown YMCA, Facenda-Whitaker Lanes, the Fellowship House of Conshohocken and Flourtown Country Club, which hosted a Special Olympics golf tournament last summer.
Special Olympics Pennsylvania provides year-round training and competition in 21 Olympic-style sports to nearly 20,000 children and adults with intellectual disabilities
With the new partnership, athletes in the Special Olympic Programs will now have access to dozens of Y facilities where they can train for the competitive tournaments offered each year, while improving fitness levels and building their conditioning skills.
According to philaymca. org, Philadelphia Freedom Valley YMCA has more than a dozen locations in the area, including Abington, Ambler, Audubon, Boyertown, Gilbertsville, Hatboro, Haverford, Phoenixville, Spring Valley and Pottstown.
Athletes will also be able to train for Olympic-type sports year round as opposed to their current 8-week sessions. The challenges of developing daily healthy habits is no different for Special Olympics athletes than it is for anyone else, and to that end the athletes will now have regular access to the health and wellness programs, group exercise and nutritionist services offered by the Y, as well as open gym and swim time.
“One of Special Olympics Pennsylvania’s primary goals is to enhance opportunities for every athlete to achieve their best,” noted Matthew Aaron, SOPA President and CEO. “This wonderful new partnership with YMCA associations will help us educate athletes and families about the importance of nutrition and a healthy lifestyle and help our athletes continuously improve their conditioning and skills. Our Montgomery County Program has had a great relationship with the Y for many years … this new partnership just makes it even better.”
The partnership will not only benefit the Special Olympics athletes, but also the communities served by the Y by opening up volunteer opportunities for both organizations while demonstrating the impact that collaborations like this can have on communities, noted Larry Richardson, President of the Pennsylvania State Alliance of YMCAs.
“YMCAs across Pennsylvania are excited to partner with Special Olympics as we share a common mission to develop vibrant and healthy communities that are inclusive of all people,” Richardson said.
Preparing for the Special Olympics Regional Invitational Track and Field Meet last spring, Otterbein pointed out that it’s the fun and camaraderie that always shape the athletes’ memories more than anything else
“Special Olympics is a great tool for physical fitness, but most of the time when you go to a tournament and ask the athletes how they did they’re not going to say ‘I did a 47.9 in the 200,’ they’re going to say they had fun and got to see their coach or their buddy from wherever and they talk about what they did rather than how they did,” Otterbein said. “The social aspect is really strong and it really makes a difference in their lives.”