Evan Ash Named Volunteer of the Year for Canada

Shelia Thompson, Evan Ash, SOC Chair Colin MacKinnon

Long time Special Olympics Newfoundland and Labrador volunteer Evan Ash is the 2007 Jim Thompson Award recipient. Evan amply fulfills the criteria for the Jim Thompson Award with his contributions, development and enhancement of Special Olympics over the last 10 years. Evan has had a profound impact on the Special Olympics movement in Canada through his efforts at the Regional, Provincial and National level. In a local context, Evan has been an integral member of the Special Olympics Mount Pearl Club. He started with the club as a member of the fundraising committee and assumed the role of Program Director from 2002-2006. Evan has served as Chef de Mission for Team Mount Pearl at the Provincial Games five times and was a member of the host committee twice. Evan has been a member of Special Olympics Newfoundland and Labrador’s Provincial Board of Directors since 1998 and sits on the organizing committee for the Chapter’s two largest fundraisers, their Special Olympics Festival and North Atlantic Petroleum Charity Golf Event. From 2002-2007, Evan served as a member of the Special Olympics Canada Coaches Sub-Committee. Taking his commitment to an international level, Evan participated as a “fan extraordinaire” by traveling with his family to Nagano, Japan to cheer on his son Andrew, a member of Team Canada’s 2005 Snowshoeing Squad. Evan Ash’s passion, dedication and respect for others make him a very commendable recipient of the 2007 Jim Thompson Award.

Evan was selected for this honour from a group of nominees across the country. As the recipient of this prestigious award Evan attended the Special Olympics Festival in Toronto. On Tuesday, December 4th, Special Olympics Canada hosted a awards evening, at which time, his efforts were acknowledged and his award presentation was made.

A Special Bond

Master Corporal Marina Halleran was only with the Gander Club for a short time but she taught the local club lessons about sport and life that will be with them forever. Marina was a coach that committed her time, expertise and was know by all as a special person that every athlete could count on.

Marina led by example. She showed athletes that with hard work, determination and an open mind anything is possible. When she originally signed up to volunteer with Special Olympics she made a commitment to the club and its athletes. Despite the many barriers and significant developments with the forces that arose for Marina she never swayed from her commitment Special Olympics. Marina is a single Mom who works for our military and was notified last year that she would be stationed in Afghanistan starting in June 2007. Even with this on her plate, she still found time to get Gander’s athletes ready for the 2007 Summer Championships. She ran and trained with the athletes until the week before she left and ensured they were prepared to do their best.

During her time with the Gander Club Marina developed a close relationship with all athletes, coaches and volunteers. When she was notified that she would be stationed in Afghanistan it was very difficult for all members of her club. Instead of shying away from dealing with the very difficult situation she was very upfront with all club members. To help the athletes understand her responsibility they hosted a gathering where she wore her uniform and explained what her role would be and that she would be on Canada’s team when in Afghanistan.

She had the insight to understand that her fellow coaches and athletes would have trouble dealing with the situation. By taking this time all club members had a better understanding of what her role would be and thus became much more comfortable with the situation. During her time in Afghanistan the club has been a huge support to her and they have been continually sending her letters and updates. Because of Marina’s actions the Gander Club is stronger than ever and they are counting the days to when she will return.

The Next Big Hockey Rivalry

North Atlantic Petroleum and its staff have been long time supporters of the athletes of Special Olympics. On November 19th they took their commitment to the next level when they stepped onto the floor hockey pad with Team Newfoundland and Labrador.

The North Atlantic team was made up of members of the NAP Golf Charity event committee including Special Olympics board member Rod Dunne. They were in tough against the provincial team who have been practicing three days a week for the past year in preparation for the National Games.

It was a great game that was enjoyed by all players and spectators in attendance. In the end the provincial team pulled out a close win and the NAP team booked a rematch after the holidays…once they are able to get a bit more practice in!

Team Newfoundland and Labrador Athletes Looking for a Helping Hand

Special Olympics Newfoundland and Labrador is thrilled with the results from our 2006 Provincial Team and we are now looking to continue to raise the bar for the services and opportunities that we can provide to our 2008 Team. This commitment to our athletes through the PTTP has resulted in a dramatic increase of expenses to Special Olympics Newfoundland and Labrador. SONL is solely responsible for covering the costs of the PTTP so that the expenses are not passed onto the athletes or the local clubs. We require additional funding to cover these increased expenses – to an amount in excess of $2000 per Team Newfoundland and Labrador member.

Through the Draft an Athlete Program, companies are given the chance to partner with Special Olympics Newfoundland and Labrador to enhance Team NL’s experience while they represent our province at the 2008 Special Olympics Canada Winter Games. The support of these generous companies will provide funds to support the PTTP, as well as uniforms, accommodation and travel for their drafted athletes. In addition, these partnerships will create a relationship of support and mutual encouragement as we work to help Team NL Athletes reach for gold at the 2008 Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Quebec City.

You can help make these dreams come true by “Drafting” a Team Newfoundland and Labrador Athlete. For a minimum donation of $1,000 you can pick or be assigned a Team NL athlete to draft. For more information on how to make this valuable impact on the provincial team contact Executive Director, Johnny Byrne at johnnyb@sonl.ca or 738-1923.

Provincial Championships on the Move

Special Olympics Newfoundland and Labrador is thrilled to have three quality hosts for its 2008 Provincial Championships. Our veteran host city St. John’s will play host to the Bowling Championships in May.

We are also very excited to have two first time hosts. The Town of Gambo will be hosting the Snowshoeing and Skiing Championships in February. The Town of Marystown will host the Track and Swimming Championships in July.

It is very exciting to have the Provincial Championships hosted in new communities and engaging new volunteers. We look forward to working with the organizing committees in each community to make these the best championships possible for our athletes, coaches, volunteers and families.

Sharing Dreams With Staples

November 1 – 17, 2007 STAPLES Business Depot customers across the country helped change the lives of athletes with an intellectual disability by raising $574,539 for STAPLES Business Depot’s Give a Dollar. Share a Dream. campaign.

As part of that program the three Newfoundland and Labrador locations ran amazing campaigns that raised record numbers for local programs. Each store hosted athletes during the campaign and employed many different creative tactics to try and raise as much money as possible for Special Olympics.

Special Olympics Newfoundland and Labrador thanks STAPLES Business Depot for their tremendous support.

Special Olympics Launches a Program for Young Children

The mission of Special Olympics seeks to provide year-round training and athletic competition to children and adults with intellectual disabilities. Special Olympics aims to engage people with intellectual disabilities through developmentally appropriate sport activities designed to foster cognitive, social and physical development. Also it is a benefit to family members of athletes with intellectual disabilities as Special Olympics often serves as a network of support. Over the years, families of children too young to take part looked for avenues to join the movement, and to this end SONL is currently developing and Active Start program to address these needs.

Active Start introduces children with intellectual disabilities and their families to the world of Special Olympics. An Active Start program aims at finding developmentally appropriate play program for children with intellectual disabilities ages 5 to 10. Active Start is a versatile program that can work in various learning situations. The program is designed for families to play with their young athletes in a fun atmosphere. It is also appropriate for preschools, schools, and playgroups to use with small groups of young children with and without intellectual disabilities. The flexibility of Active Start ensures the opportunity to welcome families and their young children into the Special Olympics family.

An Active Start pilot program was launched in November in Gander and a second will be launched in January at Memorial University. For more information on this program contact Program Director, Nelson White.