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Let me win, but if I cannot win,
Let me be brave in the attempt.
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In this edition...
- VOTERS!!
- Fall Championships
- Red Robin Fundraiser (Dec 5)
- Fall Games Sports
- Football Champs and NIRSA
- Pickleball
- Fundraising results
- Nysmith Make the Point
- Golf Tournament
- Hail and Farewell
- Fairfax Torch Run
- Fitness Class round 1...
- Basketball ascending...
- Athlete's Corner
- Health Corner
- Virtual Activities
- Area 26 Registration Resources
- Staff Directory
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A message from the Area Council...
Thank you volunteers...
In appreciation for all you do!
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2024 Election Voting Participation...
Here as promised are submitted photos of those who took the time to make sure they hav a voice.
Thanks to all of you for making the effort!!
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Kyler Reese and Barry Tilton | |
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Matt Sapienza's Thurmb voted! | |
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Grant Harris (1st at his polling place!!) | |
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Fall Championships 2024
This year there were some new innovations at the Fall Champs! Instead of a big ceremony with speeches, our SOVA hosts put on an event at the Virginia Beach Aquarium with lots of sea life and dancing, along with bingo and corn-hole it was a great new experience!
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Home Away From Home... Holiday Inn North Beach
Once again, the Holiday Inn hosted our Area delegation, and the local Knights of Columbus provided the "chow".
From our Chair and HOD..."Thank you to the Knights of Columbus for your generosity and unwavering support of the Special Olympics Athletes!"
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Lovely ladies Elaine Tilton and Patti Connolly once again made sure everyone was checked in quickly and got their food and credentials... | |
The amazing culinary talent of the Knights of Columbus!! | | |
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Our Chair motivating the morning athletes... | |
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Special fundraiser notice:
When you are done with your turkey leftovers, make room for Red Robin! Come gobble up some for Area 26!
Chantilly United Basketball Team Coach Tim Hartle is organizing this after Thanksgiving fundraiser eatfest! Come out and enjoy! Tis the season for giving and giving back!
Red Robin Fair Lakes is opening their purse for Area 26. Click the first button for information, and the second for a downloadable flyer.
Just mention Special Olympics Area 26 when you order, and we will get 20% of the profits!
When: December 5th, ALL DAY...
Location: 13056 Fair Lakes Shopping Ctr., Fairfax, VA 22033
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Season Sports and Results | |
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Bowling - by Laura Cameron
The Bomber Bowlers were so excited for Fall Champs that we were the first team to show up at the lanes! We were thrilled that our own Billy Duquette was chosen to carry the torch. After a brief opening ceremony, the games began. They bowled three games and were the last team to finish up. As a result, many of the bowling teams were then watching our team as Billy finished us out with a strike in the last frame. The cheers and clapping brought down the house! It was a perfect ending when they brought home the GOLD.
Way to go Bomber Bowlers!
That evening we joined everyone at the Aquarium and had a great time. Some of our team danced the night away and even made some new friends.
Great job Billy Duquette, Lee & Jenny Blakeman and Rebecca Cameron
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Golf - by Robin Utz
Another enjoyable season of Fall Golf! We remain grateful to our coaches and unified partners as our skills continue to improve. Our program continues to grow with younger athletes and our TopGolf participation remains strong. The inaugural, SO International TopGolf competition was held this fall and included a solid team from A26. Our dedicated coaches, Gail and Sandy, with athletes Michelle and Joe, was showcased by SOVA. In the case you haven’t seen it, here is a link on YouTube: https://youtu.be/DeFe9-hBGLs and on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/reel/3808097752852482
We held our weekly practices for all levels, played 9-holes at area golf courses, hosted a Short-Game Challenge, and had an epic golf party! During our 2024 Fall Champs experience, we had 2-day competition across Levels 1, 2, and 3, waded on the shore at the beach, had our own Grant Harris carry the torch for Opening Ceremony, enjoyed the aquarium and dance/bingo, and made new friends across Virginia.
Our results:
Level 3: Jinho Chang/Coach Nicholas Kirwan – 4th place
Level 2: Michael Abraham/Coach Sandy Schwartz – 4th place; Michelle Otterness/Coach Gail Whalen - Silver; Micheal Long/Coach Joe Long - Gold; Scott Eichmann/Coach Jason Eichmann – Gold; Jonathon Wolf/Coach Rich Wolf- Gold.
Level 1 Skills: Jarrett Datoc - Silver; Grant Harris – 4th place; Dan Hartle – Gold; Kaden Joo - Gold.
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Short game challenge in September at Oakmont | |
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Soccer - by Betty Alonso
SPECIAL OLYMPICS FALL SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP REPORT
The teams in attendance at State Games had a very packed weekend of competition. We had perfect weather, with wonderful views of the ocean. Athletes enjoyed activities held at the Virginia Beach Aquarium which included bingo, dance and cornhole.
The camaraderie amongst our players, families and several hundred athletes from Virginia was great and provided lessons in independence, responsibility and resilience, with fast paced activities. Most of all, it was very productive on the soccer fields with @ of our teams bringing home medals.
GREAT TOURNAMENT; GREAT TIME; AND VERY TIRED COACHES DRIVING HOME !!
Team Photos are Alphabetical, and taken by several individuals
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Screaming Eagles - Silver | |
No team photo providedNot pictured: Paul VI and Eagles Orange | |
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Volleyball
The WarHawks Volleyball crew placed Silver this year, up from Bronze and headed towards Gold in the future. The team played its best volleyball yet against challenging opponents!!
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Your 2024 WarHawks...
Front Row: Coach Cameron Murphy, Stephen James, Hoang Phan, Coach Alina Tilton
Second Row: Coach Christine Fowler, Austin Ward, Jacqui Calloway, Kia Hill, Kyler Reese
Third Row: Ben Fowler, Sean Minnick, Nick Ortega, Max Hershberger
Not Pictured: Coach Barry Tilton
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Flag Football: State Games and NIRSA
This year's Avengers squad came away with Silver in the top Division at their State Games at Robinson High School on October 19th. This was the first time the Avengers were the host team in a tournament.
They went on to place 2nd overall in D1 Maryland NIRSA Tournament. There were many amazing teams from the SE and NE conference who came to play and left everything on the field.
The coaches all shared that the team is improving every year, and they are all proud of the effort and sportsmanship of all the players.
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The Avengers' at thier season opener at VA Beach for the Army of God Tournament | |
Avengers brandishing their Silver at States! | |
Robinson set up the tunnel for the athletes to take the field... | |
...Here come the Avengers!! | |
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Your 2024 Avengers (pictured at NIRSA...)
Front Row: Kyler Reese, Chris Robinson, Tony Linthicum, Hoang Phan, Stephen James
Back Row: Coach Matt Elliston, Matt Sapienza, Tom Merz, Nick Donlon, Theron Fox, Nick Ortega
Not Pictured: Austin Ward, Coaches Tom Lipovski, Cameron Murphy, Barry Tilton and James Warson
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The 2024 Pickleball crew had a great time with their season.
Photos from Coach Brenda Zeph
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Nysmith Make-the-Point Campaign sets new highs!
Once again this year, the Nysmith School organized a dedicated fundraiser for our Area program.
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The Nysmith Fundraiser is a two day event, first the school gathers students in grades pre-K through 8th grade for an assembly, during which the main speaker, Global Messenger Kyler Reese gives an informative and entertaining speech about Special Olympics and why he is involved with the program and how much the school's support means to the Area 26 athletes.
This year, Kyler invited three athletes, Stephen James, Tony Linthicum, and Sean Minnick who each gave a speech - all of them sharing what Special Olympics means to them.
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PE Director Steve Balk, Sean Minnick, Stephen James, Kyler Reese and School Founder Ken Nysmith | |
On the second day, each student from all grades has 60 seconds to shoot and sink as many shots as possible. Kyler and his crew; Noah Miller, Tony Linthicum, Stephen James, Hoang Phan, Sean Minnick, cheer them on, rebound the ball quickly and teach them shooting techniques.
The School, families and friends donated a whopping $17,262! This is to date the largest amount of money fundraised by the Nysmith students for Area 26.
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The mentor/coach crew left Nysmith with custom numbered jerseys and a bag each of Nysmith swag - way cool!! | |
Mark J Emory Memorial Golf Tournament Results | |
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The 2024 Mark J. Emery Memorial Golf Tournament raised a total of $51,480. Thanks to all of our sponsors, golfers and donors! Thanks also to Chuck Roney as Coordinator and Robin Utz for her expertise and support.
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Everyone on the course for the All-Putt Challenge to open the tournament. | |
Sue Datoc, Tony Almodovar, Grant Harris and Robin Utz | |
Joy Cavagnaro, Joey Roney and Tournament Coordinator Chuck Roney | |
Nicholas Kirwin, Jeff Emery, David Curtin and Art McCauley | |
Freddie Markson, Scott Eichman and Gail Whalen | |
Donal Jackson, Andrew Allen and John Aiello | |
Barbara Emery, Robin Utz and the Westfields pro kicking off the event. | |
Cross Country Track and the Marine Corps 10K | |
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Runners RUN
Superstar racers Khang Le (Gold) , Max Hershberger (Gold) , Bruce McGiboney (Silver) , Bobby Opiela (Gold - with Partner Thomas Gregg) made tracks at the MC10K with Coaches Jeff McGiboney and Nancy Julia herding the cats!!
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Area Chair Elaine Tilton hosted a Meet and Greet for new Potomac Region Director Margaret White in Sept. Most of the Area Council, Several Coordinators and Coaches all had the chance to speak with each other and share ideas and strategies for our sports over Mexican food from Taco Bamba. | |
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Torch Run Kickoff
Global Messenger Kyler Reese ran point with the new class of Fairfax County Police Academy Cadets to kick off their training and the Torch Run Cycle. Host (and Area Bocce Coordinator Peter Flynn began the run carrying the torch together. They all had such a good time, Kyler has been invited back for their next class!!
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Kyler with Chief Brian Reilly ... | |
... and with Chief Bob Blakely | |
All photos courtesy of Officers Steve Stirckler and Tommy Thompson | |
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First run of new Fitness Class
The brand new class set up by SOVA Director of Fitness and Events Casey Henderson and Area Chair Elaine Tilton started this Fall between SOVA and the Area took off with a bang.
Coach Michael is planning on running more sessions and possibly at more locations in the near future. Look for blasts for information to sign up!!
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Basketball season getting under way...
Several teams have already started preparing for January BBall. Here are some snaps and info...
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Several of the Legends at their first practice | |
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Chantilly United Update:
by Coach Tim Hartle
Basketball season is just around the corner and the Chantilly United team is stoked! The team has been around a long time and most of the current members were part of the original team which has had its share of ups and downs. Not long ago, they lost their beloved coach Mike Abraham (standing in the red Coach's shirt) who they think of often and to whom they'll dedicate the upcoming season. On the upside, everyone looks forward to The Marymount Tournament each season.
This year, a couple of the team members are moving on to other endeavors and won’t be on the official roster. But, like all of the past team members, they’ll always be considered part of the team. In fact, when the team gets together to socialize after games (many times at Red Robin), all of the old gang is invited to enjoy each other’s company and reminisce about all of the good times. Elaine Tilton is working on getting a couple of replacements for the roster. They will be warmly welcomed by the team, including coach John Anderson and his daughter, Hillary, who has stepped up to coach this year.
To support the team financially, they’re hosting the a fundraiser at the Red Robin fundraiser mentioned above on Thursday, Dec 5, 2024. 20% of the sales will go toward paying for gym time in a local school. If you stop by Red Robin that evening, you may see them there. And, if you mention the fundraiser to your server, your sale will help support the team and keep the good times rolling.
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Hello Area 26!!!!!
This month I got a chance to interview my predecessor and mentor, Max...
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INTERVIEW: Max Hershberger
Q: What sports do you play and the name of your teams?
A: I run track and cross country, play Volleyball for the Warhawks, Cycle, swim and play Basketball.
Q: What do you do outside of sports?
A: I have a job as a full time and I work at a company called Accenture Federal services over 9 years. My role is on workplace operations crew as an Analyst.
Q: What do you do for fun?
A: Things I like to do are hiking, hanging with friends, going Sports events, listening to music, Cooking meals, and traveling to places.
Q: What was favorite part about Special Olympics?
A: My favorite part about Special Olympics is participating in the events an trying to be a good sportsman.
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Health Corner...
by Kyler Reese (reprinted from the SOVA Fitness Newsletter)
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Hi everybody!
Today I’m sharing the story of my sister, Alina, who coaches our Special Olympics volleyball team, the WARHAWKS. I got to interview her about her coaching style and what it’s like teaching our amazing team. Here’s what she told me.
Every Saturday, Alina leads our practices for two hours. We start by warming up with volleyball conditioning exercises, like shuffling and block jumping, plus a few laps to help us get in shape. Then Alina has us focus on the basics, like setting, passing, and holding a ready position. She’s great at noticing what we need most. For the WARHAWKS, it’s usually serve-receive and hustling. After practicing, she lets us scrimmage so we can use our skills in a real game.
One of my favorite parts of practice is how we end it. Alina has us form a circle, facing away from the center, and quizzes us on lessons from the day. She says this helps each of us remember what we learned. She even gives us homework called “3, 2, 1’s” in which we each need to remember 3 volleyball positions, drink 2 bottles of water, and do 1 workout a day. The workouts can be Just Dance, swimming, walking or running, or following a volleyball conditioning video. This keeps us fit and builds healthy habits, even between practices.
Alina also makes sure we play safely and avoid bad habits. Instead of tossing the ball over the net, she teaches us to roll or hand it to the next player or coach. And if we’re walking instead of jogging, it slows down practice, so she gives us reminders. If we’ve had three reminders, she might have us run laps or do burpees, and then have us explain why we had the consequence, in order to learn from it. She says it’s important to push ourselves, while making sure we’re safe and having fun. Since we practice outside, she makes sure we have plenty of water breaks and social time, which is really nice, especially on hot days.
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When in-person practice is canceled, Alina keeps us active with virtual workouts, where we play Just Dance. It’s fun, and everyone can do it, even without gym equipment. It also helps us stay connected and moving as a team, which makes us stronger as the WARHAWKS.
Alina has taught me a lot about volleyball, but she’s also shown me how important it is to keep going and work hard. She’s a great coach because she believes in us, helps us learn, and always makes sure we’re having fun.
Talk to you after the New Year,
Kyler
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Coach Leo Alonso with the Stay-in-Shape Tae Kwon Do crew ready to strike!! | | |
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Hi Athletes, Abby Whidden here...
As always, details and schedule for our online programs can be found on the online resources page on the Website.
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Thank you, YOUniquely Fit, and Coach Mike Frew (GMU Patriots Coach) for continuing your program and for providing a fitness program for all athletes to participate in! | |
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Area 26 Participation Policy and Registration Resources
NOTE: When you submit the athlete paperwork via the athleteform@novasova.org email address (and volunteer packages to the volunteerforms@novasova.org address) they go both to the Area AND to SOVA for processing.
Athletes no longer require a Doctor's signed medical certification. The new process involves a registration package filed each year, but with no Doctor medical form. The new package now contains 7 pages (five to be filled out) - please complete and submit the full package (button below).
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Volunteer Class A, and coach certifications must be updated every 3 years.
All volunteers are also required to have a Infectious Disease Waiver on file, and there is a new orientation training for all Coaches and Coordinators. See details at the button below.
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NOTE: All volunteers are Mandatory Reporters in the State of Virginia. See details at the button below for more information | |
Stay Healthy, Stay Active!!
We love to have pictures and articles of/about your Special Olympics activities. If you write them, we will post them!!
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Revealing the Champion in all of us... | | |
Please continue to share information about this newsletter and website with those you know in the community so that we can better share the wonder of our special athletes and volunteers. To sign up to receive the newsletter, go to our webform Newsletter Subscription
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