MARCH 2024 NEWSLETTER

Spring Classic

See you in Coralville and Iowa City this weekend for Spring Classic on March 8th-9th! More than 1,300 athletes will be competing in basketball, cheerleading and dance, gymnastics, and powerlifting. Good luck to everyone!

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Inclusion Week

MAKE A PLEDGE FOR INCLUSION

This week, March 4-8, more than 120 Unified Champion Schools are celebrating Inclusion Week in their schools and promoting the importance of spreading inclusion. We invite you to join in on the celebration by sharing about inclusion on social media, having your community participate in creative way, or by making an inclusion pledge.

Spring Sports

Springtime means the beginning of the track & field and swimming seasons, with meets coming up around the state in March and April.

Click the button below to find your area and view upcoming competitions.

FIND MY AREA

Annual Awards

Do you know someone who goes above and beyond for the Special Olympics Iowa community? Each year at Summer Games we offer awards to show appreciation for the remarkable people who make our mission possible.

There are opportunities to recognize exceptional athletes, coaches, volunteers, and more. Nominations are now being accepted for the 2024 Special Olympics Iowa Annual Awards.

Click the button below to see the awards categories and submit a nomination. Nominations are due by April 15th.

ANNUAL AWARDS

SOIA and IHSAA Partnership

Special Olympics Iowa and the Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) have started a partnership! The partnership is an exciting step to grow and recognize Unified sports as other sports are recognized in schools and across the state. IHSAA will work to promote unified sports programs during the 2023-2024 school year. As unified sports grow here in Iowa, we look forward to expanding offerings to schools in the 2024-2025 school year and beyond.

Potential opportunities through Special Olympics Iowa and the IHSAA include Unified bowling, Unified basketball and others as more IHSAA member schools Unified Champion Schools programs. These opportunities will be shared as they become available while IHSAA also works to promote Unified programs through Special Olympics Iowa.

Interested in being part of these opportunities?

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FUNDRAISING CENTRAL

A Dill-ightful Experience

There's still time to register for the second annual Pickleball and Public Safety Tournament on Saturday, March 16th at Life Time in Urbandale. You don't want to miss out on your chance to play in this FUNdraiser!

Registration is $50 per team, with men's, women's, and co-ed divisions available. Awards will be given to the top 3 teams in each division.

When: Saturday, March 16

Where: Life Time Urbandale

Registration: $50/team

REGISTRATION AND MORE INFORMATION

Plunging into Spring

The spring Polar Plunge® season kicks off this month! Make a big splash and an even bigger impact by registering today for a Plunge near you:

March 30 - Iowa City/Cedar Rapids

April 6 - Warren County (Norwalk)

April 20 - Cedar Falls/Waterloo

TBA - Council Bluffs

REGISTRATION AND MORE INFORMATION

Save the Date to "Roll" into TXRH!

Mark your calendars to join us for dinner at Texas Roadhouse on Thursday, April 4th from 4-8pm for the annual Texas Roadhouse Tip-a-Cop event!

Law enforcement and Special Olympics Iowa athletes, coaches, volunteers, and staff will be spreading awareness about SOIA programs and collecting donations at all 11 Texas Roadhouse locations in Iowa.

Click the button below to see a list of locations.

FIND MY TEXAS ROADHOUSE

Torch Run Apparel

This year's Law Enforcement Torch Run apparel is now available for purchase! Order your shirts from a local law enforcement officer or by clicking on the link below. All proceeds go towards supporting Special Olympics Iowa athletes and Unified partners. Available apparel includes short and long sleeve t-shirts and short-sleeve polos.

ORDER LETR APPAREL