East Central/ Area 9 News

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1 S P E C I A L O L Y M P I C S I L L I N O I S A R E A 9 S P E C I A L P O I N T S O F I N - T E R E S T : First Ever Area 9 Bocce Sports Day Highlights Meet the Area 9 Intern from Eastern Illinois University Summer Games -Why Area 9 Rocks!!!! 2015 Area 9 Bowling was a Blast Photos & More All Aboard the Toon Town Express at the Special Olympics Family Festival Brian Trickett Area 9 Golf Sensation Goes to State Team Volleyball 2015 Last Year s Winners defend titles! 2015 Taste of Something Special October 8th, 2015 East Central/ Area 9 News J U L Y S E P T I S S U E Bocce Sports Day Was A Huge Hit! While some teams were preparing for State Summer Games, several Area 9 teams were getting ready for the first ever Area 9 Bocce Sports Day, held at the Mattoon Jr. Football League practice fields on Sunday, June 7th. Athletes and coaches from around Area 9, including Windsor, Robinson, Lawrenceville, Casey, Mattoon, Tuscola, and Charleston, participated in the Bocce Sports Day and enjoyed a pizza party with family and fans afterwards. practice playing bocce matches, and learn the fun of team bocce and doubles bocce from fellow Area 9 coaches and athletes. Family members, coaches, and fans of the athletes volunteered to run bocce courts and referee Q U A R T E R L Y I S S U E that day. As a matter of fact, if not for the generous donation of time and support from the The Rominger Family, the Stivers Family, the Winnett family, Pat Black, Celeste Webb, and the Duncan Clan, the event would not have been a success. Two Area 9 Teams will advance to the District Bocce Competition in Highland, Illinois, on Sunday, October 3rd. Gold medal winners at District Bocce have the chance to advance to the State Bocce Competition held at the Special Olympics Illinois Summer Games. Coaches Corner The Bocce Sports Day was held to provide an opportunity for athletes and coaches to learn about the sport of bocce, 1

2 P A G E 2 Jimmy Pesola, Sr. EIU Student Meet the Area 9 Fall Intern!! My name is Jimmy Pesola, and I am the Area 9 Special Olympics Illinois Intern. I am a 23 year old Sports Management major at Eastern Illinois University. I live in Aurora, Illinois, and have on older sister named Lauren. Sports have also been a huge inspiration for me throughout my life, whether it be playing them, watching them, or coordinating them. Some things that I like to do in my spare time are, play sports, lift weights, hangout with my friends, and play fantasy baseball and football. Being a camp counselor at Lifetime Fitness for 7 years allowed me to do most of these things, and helped me demonstrate different leading skills. Not only did I get to play the sports with the kids, but I got to teach them how to play as well. Eventually I worked my way up within the camp. I started out as a regular counselor and eventually became a Senior Camp Counselor. Now the next step in my career is working for Area 9 Special Olympics. This has been an awesome experience for me thus far, I have gained a lot of knowledge on what goes on behind the scenes to set up different events, and have learned how to use the different computer systems that Area 9 uses to store information regarding the athletes. Overall working for the Special Olympics in the future would be a dream job for me. Not only would I get to work in a Sports Environment, but I would also be impacting the athletes lives by making sure that the events I m organizing run smoothly so that they can have the best experience possible. Area 9 Rocks State Summer Games 2 E A S T C E N T R A L / A R E A 9 N E W S

3 E A S T C E N T R A L / A R E A 9 N E W S Area 9 Bowling Highlights The Special Olympics Illinois East Central / Area 9 Bowling Tournament proved that Area 9 athletes are a force in the sport of Bowling. It was so wonderful to see all the smiling faces of the athletes, coaches, families, and fans as the event began on Saturday, August 22nd at the K-Bowl in Effinhgam, IL. The athletes prepared for the bowling competition by completing 15 practice games, as a requirement to compete, and it was evident that their hard work paid off. Volunteers from the Mattoon and Effingham areas helped to make the competition possible, and special thanks was given to Glenda Bearden with K Bowl for helping to coordinate the competition, as well as Greg Koester for coordinating volunteers. The Effingham Knights of Columbus Color Guard was present to our Nation s flag before the playing of our National Anthem. The Special Olympics Oath was then recited by Kim Stivers, the Special Olympics Illinois Area 9 Global Messenger from Camp New Hope Team. The Area 9 Bowling competition is held in honor of the memories of Susan Olszewski and Doug Shank. These two souls and their families generously provided financial support to ensure that the athletes of Special Olympics Illinois Area9 would have quality sports competitions and trainings. The Area 9 Teams that participated included: Briarwood Barracudas Bristol Green CILA Camp New Hope Charleston High School Chestnut Run CILA Countryview Terrace CTF- Olney CTF- Yearling Ct. DFI- Cila DFI- Sharks DFI- Tigers Dieterich Elementary School Effingham County Lightning Lawrence/ Crawford AEC LEARN Marion Co. Horizon Center Marks Sunset Manor Olney Rebels SCCS Windsor Schools 3

4 P A G E 4 On Saturday, September 19th, the Lakeland College campus will be filled with Special Olympics Illinois athletes from six different Areas, including Area 8 (Champaign), Area 9 (Mattoon/ Charleston), Area 10 (Decatur), Area 12 (Highland), and Area 17 (Springfield), all ready to board the Toon Town Express. That s right, Consolidated Communications is hosting the annual Special Olympics Family Festival and wants you to be a part of this amazing day for the athletes. Special Olympics Friendsfor-the-day are volunteers who get paired up with an athletes to accompany the athlete to play games, rides the train, sing karaoke, and eat lunch. This is an amazing bonding experience that can forever alter the life of an athlete. Community leaders, church groups, and students, over the age of 16, can register on-line at The Original Mystery Machine from Scooby Doo will be on site, along with many special guests! Mark you Calendars for the 2015 Special Olympics Family Festival, Saturday, September 19th!!! 4 E A S T C E N T R A L / A R E A 9 N E W S

5 BRIAN TRICKETT IS UP TO PAR!!! Brian has golfed in 9 Hole Golf competition and doubles golf competitions in the past with his father, and golf coach, Jeff Trickett, by his side. This year, Brian was not able to be accompanied by this father, but braved the change and accomplished his goal to go to State! Special Olympics Illinois Area 9 Golf sensation, Brian Trickett, of Lawrence/Crawford Association for Exceptional Citizens will advance to the Outdoor Sports Festival State Games held on September 12th and 13th in Decatur, Illinois. Brian is pictured here with L/CAEC head coach, and Brian s caddy, Janice Zwilling at the 2015 Golf Qualifier on Friday, July 17th at the Hickory Point Golf Course VOLLEYBALL QUALIFIER F Sunday, September 20th, Area 9 will host the 2015 Volleyball Qualifier F Tournement at the St. Anthony s High School Gym with matches starting at 10:00am. Several returning champion teams will be present to defend their Volleyball Qualifier titles, including, the Decatur Park District Lions and Tigers teams, the Brownsville Beagles, and the Jacksonville Red Storm. Teams that win gold at the Volleyball Qualifier are eligible to advance to the Fall State Games. Teams have already been practicing and have turned in qualifying scores to determine team divisions, but it s obvious that there will be tough competition this year. Champaign Area teams, like CUSR Mustangs and Good Shepherd Manor, have also joined the tournament this year and will be sure to improve the quality of competition. 5

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7 Coaches Corner Outdoor Sports Festival State Golf Competition at Hickory Point Golf Course, Forsythe, IL Special Olympics Family Festival Can register on-line to volunteer as a Friend-for-the-day or General Volunteer Area 9 Volleyball Qualifier Day of Competition Sunday, Sept. 20th District Bocce Qualifier Competition Entries due September 1st, 2015 Day of Competition Sunday, October 3rd, Glik Park, Highland, IL Contact Info: Vanessa L. Duncan Area 9 Director of Special Olympics Illinois 520 Jackson St. Charleston, IL Ph: (217) Fax: (217) vduncan@soill.org Facebook: SOILLArea9 7