Fall is Here!

Fall is Here!

Athletes around the state are gearing up for another year of Special Olympics excitement.

Ok, so technically fall is still a few weeks away, but that hasn’t stopped athletes all over the Piedmont Region from hitting the practice fields to sharpen their skills. In Lynchburg they’re hard at work, practicing their sets and spikes on the volleyball court. In Charlotte County, Halifax, and South Boston, they’re busy dribbling the soccer ball up and down the practice fields. In Farmville, bowling is about to start and National Games gold medal winner, Christine Beuchling, is already refining her bocce technique. And in Danville, longtime bowling coach, Charlene Pressley, is getting ready to start practice for over 100 bowlers, once October rolls around.

As you can see, fall is a very exciting time in the Piedmont Region. Let me fill you in on some of the exciting things that have been going on.

Area 24 Athletes Thank our Friends at the VMA

Area 24 Athletes pose for a picture at the Virginia Moose Association Golf Tournament

Some of our biggest supporters at Special Olympics Virginia are our friends at the Virginia Moose Association. So it was only fitting, that when they held their annual golf tournament to raise money for our athletes on August 14, we were there to thank them for their efforts. Not only did our athletes thank the Moose Association and the golfers, but, as you can see from the pictures above, they got to meet some pretty cool celebrities as well.

Thank You Joni and Dale!

Two long time Special Olympics coordinators are moving on from their positions, and we all owe them a great deal of thanks for their service to our athletes.

Area 7 Coordinator, Joni Yoder, has recently resigned her position as coordinator, and in a short time she will be relocating to the Winston-Salem area to work with Habitat for Humanity. Joni has been a staple in the Danville Special Olympics program, and she has done a great job overseeing all of our athletes in Area 7. In addition to her work with Special Olympics, Joni also served as the Financial Administrator for the Danville Arc and its related programs. Amanda Tickle, an employee of the White Oak School (also affiliated with the Danville ARC), will take over as coordinator. We are very sad to see Joni go, but we are excited to have Amanda on board.

Also stepping down is longtime Area 24, Campbell County Coordinator, Sheila “Dale” Wilson. Dale and her husband, Burnie, have been a driving force behind Special Olympics in Campbell County for decades. Their son, Brian, is active basketball player, swimmer, and track athlete. Dale is employed by the ARC of Central VA, in Lynchburg. We are very sad to see her go, but we thank her for all of her time and dedication to our athletes. Karl Koenig (husband of former Area 24 Coordinator, Dana Koenig), will be taking over as Campbell County Coordinator, and we are excited to work with him as well.

If you see Joni or Dale over the coming months, please take the time to thank them for their dedicated service to Special Olympics Virginia. Thank you ladies!

NEW: Friends of SOVA Section

This is a new feature that we are adding to the newsletter. There are a lot of businesses and organizations that support Special Olympics around the Piedmont Region. Some support our athletes financially. Some support them by volunteering at events and competitions. There are also businesses who support our athletes by hiring them and giving them a chance to show how valuable they can be in the work force. This section is our attempt to thank those businesses for their support.

And the first business to be highlighted is…our friends at SHEETZ! Who likes MTOs?

On Wednesday, September 1, Sheetz opened a brand new store in Forest, Va. At that grand opening, they presented Special Olympics Virginia with a check for $2,500. Global Messenger, Leroy Mickens, was on hand to accept the check from company Vice President of Operations, Travis Sheetz. Sheetz has long been a valuable partner of Special Olympics Virginia, and Special Olympics has recently been named their primary philanthropy. We look forward to an even more exciting relationship with Sheetz in the future.