Funding cuts threaten future of Special Olympics

Crook County kids with special needs have for many years had the chance to train and compete in sports ranging from skiing and bowling to basketball and track, winning medals and building life experiences with wide smiles on many a young face.

This year, more than 20 athletes across the three county schools are taking part in the activities offered through Special Olympics.

Unfortunately, without the help of the community, we might be watching the final year of the world-famous program in this county.

The problem is funding, says Scott Gillis, an enthusiastic member of the coaching team who believes Special Olympics is an important opportunity for these kids, and is looking to find a way to keep the program going.

"Typically, small districts – and ours is one of them – get the funding for Special Olympics through the special education grant. This is the first year that they've separated it out and said they are not going to fund the Special Olympics any more," he says.

"It's really thrown everything into question. We're at a point where we're trying to restructure and regroup."

Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for both kids and adults with intellectual and physical disabilities, with year-round activities and training offered to an estimated five million participants in 172 countries.

It's a hugely important program for the youngsters who take part, Gillis says, describing it as transformational even for the coaches.

"I started coaching Special Olympics last year and I love it – it's changed everything about how I feel about teaching," he smiles.

The team found out about the funding issue while writing the grant for this school year. They received notification from the state that federal funds would no longer be used to globally pay for Special Olympics.

This mostly affected small districts, as they are the only ones making use of those particular funds to pay for Special Olympics. Most districts are self-funding, Gillis explains.

It's early days in the planning process, but the team is hoping that members of the community who agree with the importance of keeping the program going might be willing to lend a hand.

"We're kind of at a crossroads here where it's going to have to be an organization separate from the school, although it's still our students that will be involved in it," he says.

"We're at a point where we're going to have to start getting funding from businesses and other places. I don't think they've ever been asked before, so I'm excited in a way to see what we can do."

Financial donations will be a major factor in keeping Special Olympics on track, but it's not the only assistance that would be appreciated. For example, says Gillis, a huge difference could be made through volunteers willing to work with the kids or help drive them to events, or experts in grant-writing.

Everything helps, he says, and the team is already looking at various ways to keep things going.

"The parents are going to have to take more responsibility for things like getting their kids to events," he says, as it will likely no longer be possible to use the school buses.

Meanwhile, through making some changes to the Adaptive Physical Education program at the schools, Gillis says, it may be possible to continue with some of the activities.

It's not cheap to run the Special Olympics, mostly due to logistics. For example, says Gillis, the state event for skiing takes place at Jackson Hole.

"It's a week, and Special Olympics is different because you can't have a group of kids in a hotel room. It's the kid and the parent in each individual hotel room," he explains.

That single trip can cost $40,000. It's a good example of how the costs can add up fast, but Gillis acknowledges that this particular Special Olympics event is probably not realistic going forward if the program has to be self-funded.

For now, the team is in the brainstorming stage, with a small amount of breathing room available in which to figure things out.

"What we're really looking to is next year, because we've still got scraggly funds here and there that we might be able to make this season work," Gillis says.

If you have expertise that you feel could be of value to the team and would be willing to volunteer, Gillis would love to hear from you at Sundance High School.