Hi, my name is Lucy Fengxian Balthazaar I’m an athlete from Multnomah County. I got the opportunity to compete at the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games in Orlando, Florida.
Read more about Lucy's experience in Florida, her proudest moment, and to find out how she did in her swimming competitions here »
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"For most of us it was our first time competing at USA Games for others it was a second time. And for all of us, it was a life-changing experience getting to be able to go and show our talents on a national stage."
- Lucy Balthazar,
Special Olympics Athlete from Marion County
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TODAY is the last day to register with regular shipping to receive your case of wine for the virtual event taking place on Thursday, July 21 at 5:30 pm
Special Olympics Oregon receives $50 from each case of wine purchased!
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We continue our 50 Stories of 50 Years campaign by shining a light on the people, athletes, and organizations that have helped shape the last 50 years of Special Olympics Oregon. |
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Story #6
Athlete Rachel Parsons Interviews Longtime Supporter Brett Baker
Learn how Rachel Parsons started her athletic career, learned to cook, and even met with U.S. legislators through her participation in Special Olympics Oregon. And, find out how Brett Baker, President of Springboard Group, first became a fan of Special Olympics, why he cares so deeply about ensuring the athletes are successful in sport and life, and how he stays healthy and grounded through his commitment to exercise.
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We are collecting stories of favorite memories from current and former athletes, coaches, volunteers, and family. We may reach out to you to talk to you more about your story. If your story is chosen to be featured as one of our 50 stories of 50 years, we will let you know. |
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Athletes in Action
During Summer Season
By LouAnne Tabada, Sr. Director of Program and Volunteer Services for Special Olympics Oregon OR
We had our first regional competition for the 2022 Special Olympics Oregon Summer season in Medford on June 25. 73 athletes from Curry, Jackson, and Klamath Local Programs competed in athletics (track & field) and bocce. It had been 28 months since we competed in person and the word that best described the day was JOY!
The athletes, coaches, volunteers, and families were all so happy to see each other and have an in-person competition. The day was filled with smiles, fist bumps, and fantastic competition! Everyone put forward their best effort and loved receiving an award from LETR volunteers for their hard work.
We look forward to a great rest of the season with more regional competitions across the state in July and early August.
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Thank YOU for the Incredible Support of Team Oregon
By Cindy Miguel, Director of Program and Volunteer Services for Special Olympics Oregon OR
116 days ago, Team Oregon had just finished our 2022 USA Games Training Camp, the first, whole-team, in-person gathering! On Monday, March 14th our Team Oregon fundraising campaign went live with an active “peer-to-peer” campaign, with 7 teams representing all 40 Team Oregon delegates with plans to represent our state in Orlando, Florida in the sports of swimming, Unified basketball, athletics (track & field), bowling, bocce. We also has representatives in the youth leadership experience, which is part of the Unified Champion Schools program. Our goal was to raise $50,000 to pay for the cost of attending the USA Games.
We are thrilled to announce that we have surpassed our goal by raising more than $52,000 and have done so in the true spirit of community and team effort. Our story forever moving forward will reflect the powerful and resilient connection our diverse Oregon communities, families, organizations, and individuals have with our unbelievably strong, motivated, and committed athletes and Unified partners. It would take days to recognize the many donors who helped us reach our fundraising goal. We do, however, want to provide some special recognition of a few highlights.
Top Honors in fundraising go to the Unified Basketball Team from Bend and the Swim Team. The Basketball Team, led by athletes Keifer Jackson and Cameron Walker, brought in $12,961, representing 73 donors – and continued their energy on the court, bringing home a spectacular silver medal USA Games finish! Bringing home the Gold medal in fundraising is our swim team, led by our USA Games gold medalist, Caitlyn Calaway, who raised $6,599 of the team’s $16,197, representing 156 total donors! Special thanks to Barley Brown’s Brew Pub and Sorbenot’s Coffee, for your amazing events and support of Caitlyn and Team Oregon. Other top fundraisers include: Shaun See from swimming, Marques Latson from bowling (who got a 'turkey" by bowling three strikes during his 10th frame in team bowling which caught the eye of ESPN), 200 meter gold medalist, Cadie Lange from Athletics, Ivory and John Pike from Bocce, and Annabeth and Lillibelle Bassingthwaite, our Youth Leadership Experience delegates.
Overall, this “little” 116-day, Team Oregon fundraiser represents the determination, resilience and fortitude of our Special Olympics community to overcome every barrier that the past couple of years has presented. It is a faith-restoring, collection of evidence that says our Special Olympics Oregon athletes and Unified partners matter and are worth our time, treasure, and talent! When there are so many other things taking focus in our world right now, we are truly thankful for the nearly 450 individual Team Oregon Donors who chose to stand with us, empowering our athletes and Unified partners to Shine as One!
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Volunteer
Craig Miguel
Craig Miguel is a father of 5 children and began his Special Olympics journey 14 years ago assisting with Athletics (track and field). He then became a head coach for basketball, coaching the 3-on-3 teams. His daughter, Katherine is a Special Olympics athlete who enjoys track, basketball and bowling, so the next sport Craig added was bowling. Craig recently also accepted the Local Program Management role as Sports Manager and really enjoys being part of the team!
“Special Olympics has shown me that all people can learn from each other. The athletes I have had an opportunity to work with have given me insight that everyone has something to learn about life.”
Craig enjoys spending time with his family pets, 2 dogs and 3 cats, helping at his church’s Food Pantry and taking family trips, camping, kayaking and crawdad catching. He is excited for his first large-scale competition and is preparing for the 2022 USA Games in Orlando by working on communication skills and studying up on the bowling rules.
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Our Mission
Special Olympics Oregon provides year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children, youth and adults living with intellectual disabilities, giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy, and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills, and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes, and the community.
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