Tag: Special Olympics Southern California
USA Games Athlete Spotlight: From First Responder to USA Games Athlete
By Melanie Barrios The pandemic threw everyone in a loop over the past two years. While people were instructed to stay indoors and keep a respectable six feet distance, a ...
Volunteer Spotlight: Kim Beckhart Helps To Spread Message Of Acceptance And Inclusion
By Terrionna Brockman “I’ve learned empathy, compassion, support, kindness—the littlest things are big things to a Special Olympics athlete. You might not think it’s a big deal, but when you ...
Volunteer Spotlight: Mark Chiljian on the Power of Unified Programs
By Peter Tkac Mark Chiljian is an educator at Mission Viejo High School in California, where he has taught and lead a Foundation Autism Challenges Class for the past 16 ...
Volunteer Spotlight: Coach Max Glaser Makes a Change Through Physical Fitness
By Quyen Nguyen A passion for health and fitness led Max Glaser to Special Olympics Southern California, where he is a volunteer fitness coach. Through the Healthy Lifestyle Challenge (HLC) ...
Volunteer Spotlight: Deputy Chief Blake Chow Was A Veteran Volunteer For Special Olympics Long Before Becoming An Officer
By Melanie Barrios Deputy Chief Blake Chow has been in law enforcement for an impressive 31 years. Being in law enforcement has given him different opportunities to interact with the ...
Volunteer Spotlight: Coach La Shanda Shipp Impacts Lives Of Athletes in Pomona Valley
By Kimberly Villa La Shanda Shipp’s inspiration to become a coach for Special Olympics began with a promise to her parents that if she became her brother, Tyrone’s, guardian, she ...
Special Olympics Provides Matthew Watkins with the Strength and Confidence to Be Himself
Matthew Watkins connection with Special Olympics Southern California is much bigger than training and competing in sports. Special Olympics helped him build his confidence and be true to himself. Matthew ...
Down Syndrome Awareness Month: Rachel Osterbach Defies Odds And Inspires The World
Rachel Osterbach's impact goes beyond athletics. She uses her platform to inspire and educate others, dispelling myths about people with Down Syndrome and working to eradicate the use of the ‘R-Word’.