A group of student athletes paired up with more than 100 Special Olympians from the D.C. area Saturday at the Smith Center, seeking to make a difference in the lives of special needs students in the community.
The first-ever Special Olympics Day was organized by the Student Athlete Advisory Council – a group of student athletes – and Sarah-Jo Lawrence, marketing and promotions coordinator for the GW Sports Marketing Department.
Lawrence, a former standout guard for the women’s basketball team, credited the success of the event to the support and enthusiasm of GW student athletes.
“They were instrumental in making this happen,” Lawrence said. “It was just a great day and we’re hoping to build on that year after year.”
The special-needs students from the District, Maryland and Virginia were paired with a GW student athlete for the day, and the pairs watched the women’s basketball team take on St. Bonaventure.
At halftime, two Special Olympics basketball teams scrimmaged on the court, with men’s basketball players Tim Johnson and Dan Guest serving as referees.
Student Athlete Advisory Council Treasurer Lindsey Rowe, a junior on the women’s soccer team, said the Special Olympics event was indicative of the Council’s goal of extending its community outreach.
“This year, we tried to get a little more involved, have the athletic department give back more to the communities,” Rowe said. “We’ve done a couple fundraisers, so this is just another way to get involved in the community.”
The Council’s President Peter Thomas, a senior on the men’s water polo team, said it was nice to make a connection with the Special Olympians.
“For us, it was a chance to interact with Special Olympians,” Thomas said. “Sarah-Jo told us that they wanted to meet college athletes, so it’s always nice to meet someone that’s a fellow athlete. We share a common bond with the athletic drive, and what it takes to do the sport.”
Fellow SAAC member Zach Borenstein, a senior on the men’s cross country team and the Council’s community service representative, emphasized the day’s benefits for the GW community.
“To be an athlete, there’s a lot of just natural abilities, talents, gifts that you have that you don’t realize how basic it is, compared to other people,” Borenstein said. “I think that everyone felt they could get on board with this.”
A halftime scrimmage between the two Special Olympics basketball teams, the highlight of Saturday’s event, drew a standing ovation from the Special Olympians sitting courtside as well as the Smith Center crowd.
Cheryl Beil, GW’s assistant vice president for Academic Planning, Institutional Research and Assessment, watched her son Jeremy – who has been a ball boy for the Colonials for the past 13 years – participate Saturday.
Beil stressed how much the event meant to the special-needs students who participated.
“They have been talking about this for weeks, it has been the highlight of their weeks,” Beil said. “It’s so exciting for them. And all the other kids, they love this, they practice every Saturday, so this is like a dream come true.”
