Northeast Bowlers prepare for the state tournament
Special Olympics Colorado will host the Unified Champion Schools Special Olympics State Fall Classic Bowling tournament to be held this Saturday, Nov. 19, at AMF Belleview Lanes in Englewood, CO. Several area students will be competing in the tournament. In order to be eligible to participate in the state tournament, the Northeast Bowlers competed in the Unified Champion Schools (UCS) Special Olympics Northeast Regional Bowling Competition held at Highland Park Lanes in Greeley, Colorado on Saturday, Oct. 1.
The Northeast Bowlers, comprised of Athletes and Partners through the Northeast Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) Unified Champion Schools (UCS) Special Olympics bowling program, were part of the 11:30 a.m. “wave,” which consisted of 90 bowlers in either singles, doubles, or team competitions. The opening ceremony was held at 9:00 a.m. followed by the first wave of competitors. After the first group finished, Northeast Bowlers competed in singles as well as unique doubles divisions. All Northeast Bowlers ended with top honors finishing in the top 4 in their assigned lane.
This 2022 fall bowling season has been a coordinated effort and expansion of Unified Champion Schools (UCS) Special Olympics activities for Northeast BOCES’ twelve member districts and their students (ninth grade through age 21 (if still in school). UCS Special Olympics allows youth with intellectual disabilities (“Athletes”) to partner with peers without disabilities (“Partners”) through year round sports and social inclusion of all individuals. Each athlete is welcome to participate in just one or multiple sports. Teams are co-ed.
Members of Northeast Bowlers include: Abraham Diaz — Holyoke Athlete, Thomas Diaz — Holyoke Partner, Tayla Martin-Holyoke Partner, Austin Durbin — Holyoke Athlete, Christian Gallagher — Yuma Athlete, Caleb Moormeier — Akron Athlete, Frannie Sawyer — Lone Star Athlete, and Maggie Sawyer — Lone Star Athlete. John Durbin of Holyoke stepped forth and was the main coach for the team. Other volunteers for the season include: Deb Dickerson, Nikki Hettinger, Craig Parker, Colleen Weaver and Josie Herman.
The 2022 bowling season will conclude following the state tournament on Nov. 19. The UCS Special Olympics basketball season will start soon. Track and field season will commence in the spring. If you are interested in participating as an athlete, partner, coach, or volunteer, please contact Trudy Herman — NE BOCES Special Olympics Coordinator — or Michelle Patterson — NE BOCES Director of Special Education — by calling 1-970-521-2771 ext 1242 (for Trudy) or ext 1233 (for Michelle).
Congratulations on excellent bowling at Regionals and best wishes at State, Northeast Bowlers!