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Three weeks from now, athletes from all across the state of Washington will be participating in the Special Olympics Spring Games.

More than 1800 athletes will gather at three venues here in western Washington to compete in sports, from track to soccer to cycling to swimming.

A closer look at the Special Olympics is next on Northwest down the Washington State Special Olympics.

Spring Games will be held this year at PLU, JBLM, and the King County Aquatic Center.

Since Special Olympics was started by Eunice Kennedy Shriver back in 1968 nationwide, almost 6 million athletes have competed in local and national events.

Here in Washington State, Special Olympics just made a little history by naming one of the athletes to the organization's governing board.

While the Special Olympics is a local, national and global organization, as Northwest now contributor Philip Townsend shows us, it's the individual athletes who truly make it special.

Cheering Yes.

Awesome.

I'm here to coach my special Olympic squad to get ready for USA Games.

Cheer is a brand new thing for Special Olympics.

This is putting cheer on the same level as any other Olympic sport that you see in regular Olympics or Special Olympics.

Seven.

So this makes it so that they are competing at the highest levels possible with accommodation, which is how their schooling is conducted.

To be able to do that at the highest level for cheer and to be a part of it for the very first year that it's an official sport is massive.

We're setting the standard by six, seven, eight.

Well, Sam, he's been doing this since 2016 with the JBL and Tigers.

And the highest we would go would be state level.

So this is massive to be able to go forward.

So good job, Sammy.

You remember.

Yes.

She's determined.

she's silly.

She's fine.

She's goofy.

She loves movies.

She loves dance.

She loves bling.

Make up all the typical things that you would expect a young person of 24 to be into.

She's pretty much into it.

And she loves being with her family.

She loves being with her friends.

She's a very outgoing person.

You know, I don't think she hasn't learned anything of the coaching that we've been doing.

And then I'll watch her with everybody else.

And she's she's out there doing it, and she's got it all figured out.

So it's a journey as a team, but it's also an individual journey.

One, two, three.

All right.

There's no passion to do cheer and dance.

And when I found out that this sport was actually going to be and official sport, for Special Olympics.

I was blown away.

Like the best part of it is by releasing all this negative stuff that's been going on with me.

Because when I dance and cheer, it makes me feel free.

I love my teammates.

I do a have a co-captain and her name is Emily.

And she's just been amazing helping me.

I got 12 sisters out of it.

You know, like, they're like the coolest people.

And I get so excited for cheer just to see the same people every day.

It's just so exciting because I've changed.

Like, they make me a better person.

So it's all about ability.

We're not looking at, Well, so-and-so can do this and so-and-so can do that in a traditional sport.

It's about, Hey, you did a somersault.

That's fabulous.

You straightened your arm today for the first time when you're doing our cheer.

That took a lot of work for you.

I work harder more.

Keep going.

I push myself.

I love it.

It's my dream.

I think the team has incredible potential.

I think we can do it.

What is meaningful?

It's meaningful participation.

You almost can't describe it because it's pure joy.

Yes, it's extremely important.

It's motivating.

It's self-affirming.

It's equality.

It's accommodation.

On its grandest scale.

And while everybody is excited to get started with this year's competition, the past two years during the pandemic were not easy to navigate.

That's part of our discussion with Washington State Special Olympics Chief Operating Officer Mary Doe and a special Olympian from Tacoma, Wesley Simmons.

Welcome, both of you to Northwest Now, I want to start with a little biographical information.

Mary, give us a brief bio.

You've actually been at this for a long time with Special Olympics.

I have.

And so thanks for for having us here.

We're really grateful for the opportunity to talk about Special Olympics and the great things our athletes are doing.

And while I have been with the movement for almost two decades and started my career with special effects in Northern California, an original Seattle girl that started my career there and realized it was one of these amazing things that we have a lot of opportunities to do good and support incredible people in our movement.

And I just haven't stopped.

So it's been really grateful for the continued opportunities.

Great.

Wesley, you dropped an interesting set of facts on us before we got started.

You have 152 medals over 20 years, which has to be some sort of an Olympics record.

I would think that is amazing.

When did you get started and how did you get interested in Special Olympics?

I got started at age eight, and I just heard about it through word of mouth, and I just thought it would be a cool opportunity to do for myself.

And get me into something that I would enjoy.

Mm hmm.

And something at a very young age to be able to be athletic and get fit was really cool to me.

Yeah.

And getting to know the community, I would think would be good to have.

You made a lot of friends through this?

And associates.

Oh, of course.

Yes.

Especially through the leadership opportunities I've had.

It's been really good to get connected with both friends and staff through Special Olympics.

Great.

That's one of the things I wanted to talk about with you, Mary, is that it's not just Special Olympics.

We think of the the athletic events, but there are some nice offshoots of it as well, one of them being the leadership piece.

And Wesley created a nice segue way for that.

What is that leadership program and and how do you matriculate into it?

Well, Wesley is going to be able to explain it way better than he's actually doing it all the time.

But I think leadership is and is one door for our athletes to empower them to to be leaders.

So we provide them tools and skills to be leaders beyond the field of play.

You know, we've got athlete input counsel, so we we take it very seriously.

When we are saying that our movement is led by athletes.

And so we want to empower them to to lead this movement beyond any of our staff that will be here and to talk about how great Special Olympics is.

Leadership also includes trainings for board governance, for them to find jobs, for relationships, those types of things that you would find on the field and off the field.

And you just named an athlete to the board.

Yeah, we did.

Kelly Campbell is our first athlete board member, and pretty incredible.

She's amazing.

What do you want to do in leadership?

Wesley You're going to be the commissioner of the of the golf league someday and make some rules.

I don't like the marks on the balls.

I'd like you to take those off if you're ever commissioner.

What what are your plans as a leader in Special Olympics?

I don't think I'm going to be in that position.

I'm mostly going to try to be involved.

My goal is to try to be like an athlete advocate for athletes who can't speak out as well as other athletes to try to get their voices heard.

And give them opportunities to give input where it's needed most.

Yeah.

Good.

One of the other offshoots we were talking about, the offshoots piece in addition to the leadership program is the Young Athletes Program.

Wesley mentioned being involved at at eight years old.

But I know there's a lot of, you know, gym classes and gymnastics for even little, little, tiny, tiny people.

The Special Olympics have an opportunity for really young people.

You do?

We do.

So all ages, right.

So with young athletes, that's our activities from two to about seven years old.

And this is really about hand coordination, friendship playing together.

And young athletes is not just individuals with intellectual disabilities or developmental disabilities.

We're partnering our athletes with people without disabilities.

And so that beyond young athletes, we have unified programing to, again, putting folks together that are with and without disabilities.

But we're we want this entry point for anyone to join and young athletes is a really wonderful way to get the little ones involved.

In preparing for the show.

It it really kind of struck me, looking at how it was founded back in the sixties, that this was this was DIY before there was DIY you know, it really it really was ahead of its time in a lot of ways.

Is that an accurate observation and what role does that play now?

Do you feel like Special Olympics is kind of like a new day?

People are like, Oh, well, of course we had to do this, or is that always been there and has been a leader in that movement?

Help!

Help me understand your help.

Selfishly, I'd like to say that we've definitely been a catalyst, right?

Not just the staff at the volunteers, the community, the parents.

The athletes are truly catalysts in inclusion.

And bringing our athletes again on the field first is really about.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver was like, We're getting our athletes out and we're going to play sports.

And beyond that, it's grown into this global movement of inclusion, of athlete leadership to health, to unified schools.

It's incredible.

But there's still a lot of work to do, and we're continuing to stand in the forefront, holding hands with other like minded organizations to continue to pound on the door and say that we need to do more.

Wesley Mary mentioned the volunteers and I'd like you to talk about them a little bit.

Having 152 medals means that you have been in a lot of events over the years and seen the role volunteers play to get the advance off the ground, to coordinate them, get them to get them to function correctly.

Talk a little bit about the volunteers and the relationship that the athletes have with them.

What I've seen, the volunteers and the athletes have is the coaches and the athletes.

The coaches act as mentors, giving them the skills to succeed in their sport.

Through like physical ability to succeed and like mental and skill progression in that area.

So you have the the physical coaching piece, but also the mental side of whatever game you're in for you.

Golfing, cycling, swimming.

There's there's a mental part to that game, too, of I would say probably has to do with staying positive or being motivated to train in some of those.

Yes.

And what is the best way to help you progress Mm hmm.

Yeah.

Good.

Mary, give me a sense for the size of the organization in Washington State.

It looks to me, looking at the website, you have like an eastern Eastern games, Western Games, they come together for a big games.

How does how do all the divisions relate?

And then how does that relate to nationals?

Because I'm I'm sure a lot of athletes have that as a goal.

Could you kind of lay that that framework out?

Yeah.

So our head we're headquartered in in Seattle, we've got about 30 plus staff that work all across the state, but we serve everyone in Washington State.

A lot of them are remote, but again, serving on it on a normal time about 19,000 athletes.

Wow.

Unified partners.

Again that's the normal pre-pandemic times and and typically what happens is sports happen at the local level it is it is the the most important kind of grassroots pieces that the local folks as you know Leslie was talking about coaches in the local areas that are training our athletes for a sport of their choice From there they have local competitions then they can move to regional competitions and when they medal there then they move to the state game.

So we've got a big state games coming up here in Tacoma the June 17th through the 19th.

That's happening very soon.

And from there, if it happens to be a allocation year for athletes to go to a national games, USA Games typically happens every four years that they would then medal and have an opportunity to compete in the USA Games.

So that's kind of high.

So they could they could do well this year and, and in in three years from now be in the next national games.

Yeah, it would be.

I mean, we would probably use the, the medaling or results from, you know, the two years, right?

Prior to OK, so it's about two years out.

So this, this, this games in Tacoma won't necessarily feed nationals, but it'll be a step toward that.

And then two years from now, those are going to set you up for the Nationals.

So two years ago, we had athletes or even pre-pandemic was actually before then had athletes that were getting ready for the U.S.A. Games.

And now we're sending about a hundred to Orlando this June.

Yeah.

So there was a national games in Washington State not that long ago, right?

20, 18.

20, 18.

Yeah.

OK, pre-pandemic.

I want to get this comment from both of you and I'll start with you, Wesley, how did the pandemic affect the Special Olympics in terms of advance participation?

Maybe and maybe from your perspective as an athlete, the training or being able to get with your coach for mentorship, how did the pandemic affect things?

It actually affected a lot.

Um, the sports actually had to turn virtual.

So that was really hard because you couldn't get together with your friends it was all basically over Zoom.

If your coaches wanted to do it that way.

So some teams weren't even, even meeting for their sports and it took a big affect on some of the athletes actual mental state also.

Yeah.

Like I had a personal friend who actually felt really affected by that.

Mm hmm.

Because it was it's such an outlet for them.

They're so tied into it.

It's such a part of your lives.

And then to have that taken away is going to be very difficult.

Yes.

Because he was not able to get out and have that exposure to having something active to do.

Yeah.

And he felt like he needed that to be able to do something physical.

Yeah.

To be happy and to feel good.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Mary, talk a little bit about where kind of what some organizations there trajectory didn't change that much.

I would imagine when it comes to team sports and playing with getting at events, the Special Olympics did this and then did that during the pandemic.

And now you're basically trying to rebuild.

Talk a little bit about that, what the process is.

Rebuild is a great word.

And I think I would I'd have to say that we're really proud of our team of.

The word is pivot right through the pandemic and we did what we we know what we needed to do.

And a lot of it was the social aspect of special things, right beyond the sports piece.

And a lot of our athletes love that.

But the opportunity for them to be together is just as important.

So the team put together virtual programing, which was very successful, but there were still a lot of athletes waiting on the sidelines that may have not had the opportunity to to participate virtually.

Right.

Whether it be access or Wi-Fi, those types of things.

And team sports, I mean, team sports.

And so it was a rough time.

And we took a conservative approach because we do have a population of folks that have different medical conditions that the pandemic really impacted Fast forward now.

We're back and it's exciting.

We've had local teams are starting to get together based on their comfort level.

Regional tournaments are happening.

And again, this big state games and USA Games is going to be kind of the we're ready and coming back.

And, you know, one of the big impacts that we had with with not only not being able to serve our athletes was volunteers coming back.

I was going to say, did you end up shedding a lot of volunteers who moved away, got involved elsewhere, or I imagine I could see the volunteer.

Crew.

Being a real challenge?

Yeah.

Know, volunteers are the backbone of our organization.

That's how it started and still how we exist.

And we took a big, big hit.

And I think it was a combination of a lot of things.

Folks were, again, the pandemic from moving on to saying, hey, it's maybe time for me to hang up my Special Olympics boots and move on to other things.

But and then we have this other army of compassionate volunteers that continue to work with us and show up day by day or hour at our events during the day.

But we need more.

So, I mean, if if there was a big call to action is to to get involved.

And without our volunteers, our athletes don't get to play.

Let's take the moment.

Go ahead and do that.

What is the call to action?

How do how do people get involved?

This is, you know, give me 30 to 60 seconds of you talking to people to get them involved.

I've absolutely.

Thank you.

So, you know, the best place to go is Special Olympics Washington dot org.

You will find all of our information about our activities, our athletes or different sports.

You don't have to know sports to be to be involved.

There's a lot of opportunities for folks of any skill set, any level, any age to get involved in our programing.

And we know that it means so much to us and to our athletes to be able to continue to get on the field and be with their friends because without them, special taxes is going to struggle.

What's the same question for you?

Mary gave the website, which is great.

What what would you say to people who maybe watch this show and think, well, should I volunteer?

Maybe I have the time to do it, or maybe I should participate?

I have a grandson who I think would be perfect for this.

What would your message to those folks be?

My message to those people or the well would be I think it's a really good opportunity for the people to or their children with disabilities, no matter what disability would be really good to give them, not opportunity to succeed and at least try something new.

Because it will give them something that they could thrive at.

And enjoy.

And everybody should have that opportunity to make themselves the best version of themselves that they can possibly be.

That's that's very nice.

Is is it would it be accurate can Special Olympics be life changing for a person?

Oh, yes, it can.

Definitely.

It has changed my life dramatically.

I had a lot of issues due to my disability, and it has helped me suppress those issues by getting out and having that tool to succeed.

And it has been I personally think it has been a part that has probably saved my life one way.

Wow.

Well, powerful testimonial, that's for sure.

Yeah.

Mary, another thing that I know people see and I'd just like you to spend a minute on is the polar plunge how you know that?

I've kind of that's one of the things that people may not see any special.

They may not see the track meet, but they typically will see the polar plunge.

What is that?

When does it happen?

What does it for?

Lay that out.

Sure.

So Polar Plunge is one of our really wonderful fundraising and public awareness events.

It's led by law enforcement, which we've got a wonderful partnership with law enforcement all across the state.

So they helped really lead this event.

Again, it is a fundraiser.

So we recruit folks, brave souls to fundraise and jump into cold bodies of water to spread awareness about special effects.

It does get a lot of coverage.

It is a lot of fun.

And, you know, it's just a little moment in the cold for for a really awesome organization.

Just so people have some perspective on the food chain of your fundraising, is it high, low, medium?

Where is it how important is it people maybe take notice and get involved?

Yeah, I think it's very important.

It's I mean, all of our fundraiser events are at the high level, right?

I think with the law enforcement, it's up on the on the higher end campaign.

Because it's one of the major events that they support through the law enforcement chartering campaign.

And so it's a big event.

We want to bring it back even bigger in this upcoming winter season.

I know summer's coming.

So as you think about those warm rides now, you know, think about what you can do, jump in the water and raise a little a little money for Special Olympics.

And our athletes continue to play.

Think about Puget Sound as it never gets any warmer.

That's true.

So you can have that 12 months a year.

We have to eat a handful of hot chocolate.

Yeah.

And your heart will be warm, I promise.

I don't know.

Somebody with 152 medals has to participate in the polar plunge.

You may be exempt because you're so cool with all those medals.

Have you ever done it?

And no because I have, Reynolds.

Which once you get really, really cold, it's really hard for you to warm up.

Oh, OK.

So I'm not able to do it.

He gets a pass.

I say maybe.

Maybe the one time in your life where you actually benefit from that.

Possibly.

Yeah.

Not go through freeze yourself.

What is happening after the spring games?

What's the cycle?

I know you're all totally focused on June and here in Tacoma, which is really cool.

Maybe you can give us the venues for that if people wanted to watch.

And then how does the cycle proceed for?

Yeah, so for spring games again, you can find that on our website and this will happen at Pacific Lutheran University.

We'll be at the King County Aquatic Center as well as Joint Base Lewis-McChord and a variety of different sports you can find.

You come out as a spectator or volunteer following that will be moving into our summer season.

So we're already planning in advance and are already planning for the fall, which fall state games will happen later in the Tri-Cities but we'll be getting ready for our summer season sports, which will be softball, golf, those types of things.

And looking at league plays, we'll have a community challenge where people in the community can participate with our athletes virtually or in person in steps and different fitness exercises.

So there'll be still a hybrid component for folks that are comfortable and so more to come on that, but there'll be a lot of activities still happening at the local level.

The more I learn about this and listen to you talk, the more intimidated probably I am by the organizational challenge of multiple statewide games per year, depending on the season in the sport that feed into the Nationals and keeping track of that every other every two years.

And man it's it is an administrator and plus coordinating the volunteers and the venues.

Like I say you just start thinking about it and you're all of a sudden you're like, oh wow, that's a lot.

We're flexing their muscles that we haven't been using in a while.

But this team has been incredible and again, these volunteers that come out year after year to help support these games as well as the local volunteers.

So again, if you get bit by that bug special, those guys, I promise you, you will be back.

Good.

Well, great conversation.

I appreciate you both coming to Northwest now.

Both Mary and Wesley, thanks so much for coming.

Thank you.

Thank you.

I love the motto of the Special Olympics.

Let me win.

But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.

The bottom line, those are words for all of us to live by.

I hope this program got you thinking and talking to watch this program again or to share it with others.

Northwest now can be found on the web at KBTC dot org and be sure to follow us on Twitter at Northwest now.

Thanks for taking a closer look on this edition of Northwest Now and until next time.

I'm Tom Layson.

Thanks for watching.