Thunderbolt's Adapted Softball (high school) Special Olympics Basketball Special Olympics Softball Thunderbolt's Adapted Soccer (high school) Special Olympics Flag Football
Woodbury Athletic Association In-house Basketball
So I combined his SOMN basketball and softball into one highlight video. Bryan coaches his team for both sports and it is a lot of fun. We love Special Olympics!
Special Olympics softball is a fun but short season with only one competition - the Summer Classic Games. We are so very spoiled that this event- and also the state flag football event- are hosted in our city!
Brett usually plays 3rd base, and Bryan is one of the coaches for his team. Brett is a good hitter, and he's looking forward to joining the high school's adapted softball team (Thunderbolt's) this spring!
Unified sports are one of my favorite things about Special Olympics. It brings people who might not typically interact in daily life together and uses the shared enjoyment of athletics as a way to build relationships and uplift the movement of inclusion.
In unified flag football, three athletes and two non-disables "unified partners" play on the field at the same time. There are many rules about who can do what on the field in an effort to keep the focus on building up and supporting the athletes. The main and obvious rule is that a unified partner can't pass the ball to another unified partner. As you watch the video, you can see how the unified partners from BOTH teams are working to create an experience where the athletes get to shine - while still enjoying the true spirit of competion.
Brett loves being the quarterback but gets to play all the positions. Lydia was a unified partner for a second year and we also recruited Bonnie's son, Matt. He was a great addition to the team!
Next weekend we will again be participating in the Frozen 5k and Polar Plunge to raise money for Special Olympics Minnesota! We have a team - the Oreo Dunkers. It's the five of us plus Bonnie and Taylor. We named our team the Oreo Dunkers because Brett loves oreos so much that he named his guinea pig "Oreo" and he also has aspirations to someday dunk a basketball. Visit our page to contribute to our fundraiser!
Brett got to try something new this summer - softball! The Special Olympics delegation he normally plays with doesn't have a softball team, so he played with another nearby team - the Blazing Stars! He loved playing softball. They had a regional tournament at the end of the season and placed 2nd. Brett went 5-for-5 hits in the tournament! He mostly played 3rd base, short stop, and backup 1st base.
