Special Olympics Maryland’s

Brave in the Attempt Talks 2025

Now in Montgomery County

Monday, June 9, 2025 6-8 PM

Roundhouse Theater- 4545 E West Hwy, Bethesda, MD 20814

A groundbreaking personal story-telling platform in a "TED Talk" style format where you will have the chance to hear from speakers who have intellectual and developmental disabilities. Speakers will discuss topics from their own life experiences, lessons learned, and how they are leading the way now and in the future. A night of sharing stories about being "positively progressive"

It's free to attend, but we kindly request that you register.

You can register here: https://support.somd.org/event/2025-brave-in-the-attempt-talks/e682345.

This game is also Star Wars Night where you can meet dozens of Star Wards characters, watch lightsaber battles and interact with exhibits! After the game there will be fireworks for all to enjoy!

PLUS Special Olympics Maryland will have a very special parade around the field before the game. To be included in the parade, we ask that you arrive by 5:30pm!

Gates will open at 5:15pm. Pre-game ceremonies begin approximately 6:00pm. Baysox game time is 6:35pm. 

Seating for this event is GENERAL ADMISSION. Open bench seating with backs will be available on both the right and left field sides of the Stadium. Because seating is General Admission, the seat number listed on your order is strictly for tracking purposes and does not preassign you a specific location. You will be able to choose your own seats upon entry.

Your tickets are valid for the game date they are purchased only and may not be exchanged for another date. ALL SALES ARE FINAL.  

PLEASE NOTE: All Baysox concession stands are CASHLESS, meaning payment will need to be made by credit or debit card, mobile tap or Baysox Bucks. Cash will not be accepted.

Healthy Athletes at Summer Games!!!!

Saturday June 21st

Towson University, University Union

3rd Floor 11 am to 6 pm

Special Olympics is the largest global public health organization dedicated to serving people with intellectual disabilities. The Special Olympics Healthy Athletes Program offers health screenings in nine areas: Fit Feet-Podiatry, FUNfitness- Physical Therapy, Health Promotion- better health, Nutrition and Well-Being, Healthy Hearing- Audiology, MedFest -Sports Physical Exam, Opening Eyes- Vision, Special Smiles- Dentistry, Strong Minds- Mental and Emotional Health, and Healthy Young Athletes- Pediatric Screening.

Get YAP-PY at Summer Games

Friday June 20th

4:30 to 7:00 pm

Towson University, Towson Center

Young Athletes Culminating Event for all Young Athlete participants ages birth to 7 and their families at Towson University! Young Athletes offers families, teachers, caregivers and people from the community the chance to share the joy of sports with all children. Children of all abilities take part, and they all benefit. 

Please register each athlete individually

Main Street Neighborhood Safety Day

June 28, 11 AM – 1 PM 

FREE and Open to Everyone!

Be sure to register so you don't miss any event details! 

Main Street and the Rockville City Police are partnering to host a Neighborhood Safety Day on Saturday, June 28, from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm!

Monroe Place will be closed and filled with fun and educational opportunities. Engage in interactive activities with first responders, watch safety demonstrations, learn about health and safety resources, connect with friends, and make some new ones! The event will include:

• Mock traffic stops
• Police dog demonstrations
• Pedestrian safety walks
• Bike safety demonstrations
• Music with DJ Matt
• Face painting
• Food for purchase from Soulfull Cafe and food trucks

Participants who visit many of the exhibitors can visit the Main Street table to get a small prize - and have their name entered into a raffle for a larger prize!

Be sure to register so you don't miss any event details.

Special Olympics Day at Bethesda Big Train

Sunday, June 29^th

Gates open at 6 PM, Game Starts at 7 PM

Get ready for a fun evening of baseball and celebration! The Bethesda Big Train Baseball Club is thrilled to host Special Olympics Day at their game on Sunday, June 29th, as they take on the Southern Maryland Senators.

The excitement doesn’t stop at the game—fans will also get the opportunity to see 2024 Olympic Gold Medalist Thea Lafond in person!



🏅 Free Tickets Alert! 🏅

Special Olympics Montgomery County (SOMO) has a limited number of free tickets available for this special event. These free tickets are expected to go fast, so don’t miss your chance!

Applications for the free ticket will close on Sunday, June 15, 2025, and the winners will be notified on Wednesday evening, June 18, 2025. A confirmation will be sent once you apply for the tickets.

If you don’t snag a free ticket, no worries! You can purchase tickets directly for just $13 per person at the ticket link for this event.

We can’t wait to see our SOMO family come out and cheer on the Big Train on June 29th—let’s make it a night to remember! 

SAVE THE DATE

Save the Date

July 19, 2025

Special Olympics Day

Lone Oak Farm Brewing Company



Watch future Newsletters for more information on this fun event.

Nissan Car Raffle

The winner will be selected at

The Day of Inclusion

on

Saturday, July 19, 2025

at

Lone Oak Farm

Nissan is teaming up with Special Olympics Maryland for the first-ever statewide car raffle to benefit Special Olympics Maryland and support athletes and Unified teammates across the state. The prize will be the winner’s choice of either a $27,000 payment by Special Olympics Maryland directly to Nissan, towards the purchase of a Nissan Kicks SR AWD vehicle, or $22,000 in cash.

This is a collaborative fundraiser for both Special Olympics Maryland and SOMO! When you designate SOMO as your local program, we'll receive 70% of the proceeds from your ticket purchases.

Athlete Registration must be valid from the first day of practice

 until the last day of competition.

Sign up at

somdmontgomery.org/becominganathlete/

Be sure your athlete has completed a new Athlete Registration Form.

See the information below the signup dates.

NEW - Athlete Registration Forms - NEW

Important Update (effective 3/22/2025): SOMD has now transitioned to the use of the Athlete Registration form. This form is required annually and removes the need for a medical professional's signature for virtually all Special Olympics Maryland's athletes. The new form can be found on SOMO's website under the Forms Tab.

Athletes with current valid medicals (with Communicable Disease Waivers (CDWs)) will not need to complete the Athlete Registration form until their current medical is due for renewal OR January 1, 2026, whichever is earliest.

New Athlete Medical forms will continue to accepted, but will require the subsequent annual submission of the Athlete Registration form for the athlete to continue to be eligible to participate in Special Olympics programs.

Emergency Medical Care Refusal Form: This special form is only required if the athlete or guardian checks off either box on the Athlete Registration waiver indicating they do not consent to the athlete receiving emergency medical care or do not consent to blood transfusions in the event of an emergency. This completed form must be submitted along with the Athlete Registration form in order for the Registration form to be processed. In addition, a family member must be in attendance with their athlete at all times (practices and competitions). 

New Athlete Registration Form with SOMO Instructions

Emergency Medical Care Refusal Form for adult athletes who are their own guardian.

Emergency Medical Care Refusal Form for minor athletes and for adult athletes who have a legal guardian.

The new Athlete Registration Form should be scanned and emailed to

registration@somdmontgomery.org.

SAVE THE DATE! 🏌️‍♂️⛳

Join us for the 2025 Montgomery Masters Golf Tournament, our biggest fundraiser of the year, supporting the incredible Special Olympics athletes of Montgomery County!

Thanks to our generous community, the 2024 tournament raised over $40,000 to empower these athletes—let’s make 2025 an even bigger success!

📍 Where: MCG’s Hampshire Greens Golf Course

⏰ When: Tee-off at 9 AM, followed by our legendary Awards BBQ Lunch

🔹 Sponsor & Golfer Registration OPEN NOW! If you're an early planner, secure your spot today at https://somdmontgomery.org/moma. If you prefer to wait, no worries—we’ll officially open registration in August.



We can't wait to welcome SOMO families, sponsors, and friends for an amazing day of golf, camaraderie, and celebration. See you there! 🏆🎉

Volunteer Corner



Please reach out to Shelly Bogasky at sbogasky@somdmontgomery.org if you would like more information on any of these following open volunteer positions.

TOPGOLF

We are seeking a long-term Head Coach and Team Manager to continue this recreational program. Some golf experience is needed. Please reach out to John Bogasky at johnbogasky@hotmail.com for more information.

Social Media Contributors

We're looking for family members or volunteers to post occasional pictures and information about their teams.

Volunteer Outreach Coordinator (Multiple Opportunities, Choose one or all)

Represent SOMO at the MCPS Special Needs Fair, and the Spring and Fall Transitioning Youth Fairs. Respond to inquiries regarding volunteer opportunities, reaching out to various groups when needed.

More Coaches Needed

As our programs continue to grow, we need more coaches if we are to accommodate all athletes. Volunteering as a coach not only benefits the athletes but also offers a unique opportunity for personal growth and skill development. We strongly encourage parents to volunteer to help coach their children's sports. Special Olympics will provide the necessary training and support needed. Nearly all of our Head Coaches are parents.

Pickleball

We have a coach, now all we need is a Team Manager. Someone to confirm that all athletes and volunteers have current paperwork and take attendance.

Tips for Making the Team



Most of our programs have been reaching capacity, and we’ve had to use our Guidelines for Managing Roster Caps During Signups for several seasons in multiple sports. Many sports reach capacity within hours, and some, like bowling in minutes.

If you want to maximize your chance of making the team of your choice,

here are a few best practices.

• Become a coach or volunteer before signup (subject to Head Coach approval)
• Have current Registration Package on file, valid from the first day of practice through the end of the season. Don’t wait until the last minute, as it can take several weeks to process forms.
• Signup for only one sport
• When space is limited priority is given to athletes that live in Montgomery County

If your sport reaches its roster cap and we have a wait list, all athletes must commit to attending all qualifiers and State Competition in order to make the team.

Athletes that select a team sport must commit to participating in all qualifiers and State Competition. If you know you must miss a competition, talk with your Head Coach at the season’s start. Athletes who miss qualifiers or competitions without this advance notice and approval cannot participate in that sport next season.

Reminder Procedures for Athlete and Volunteer Registration

As our program continues to grow, so does the number of forms our all-volunteer team needs to process. To reduce the administrative burden on our volunteer team we need to make the following changes:

• All forms must be submitted together as a single PDF
• Incomplete and non-PDF submissions will be rejected and discarded
• We will not keep noncompliant submissions

Directions for creating PDF files on your phone are included in both the Athlete and Volunteer Registration Packages. You can also snail mail your complete forms to SOMO at P.O. Box 1809, Rockville, MD 20849, this method will increase processing time.

These changes will help reduce the effort required to process each athlete and volunteer package. We appreciate your help with this new process.

Do You Have Team Pictures to Share?

It's nice to share pictures and videos with families not able to attend our events. If you have pictures to share you can upload them to SOMO Pictures. Any pictures uploaded to SOMO Pictures will be posted on SOMO's Smugmug page. Please send John Bogasky an email at johnbogasky@hotmail.com with dates, sports, or events.



You can view pictures from current and prior years at SOMO’s Smugmug site.

Where We Practice

Bequests and Planned Gifts

Legacy gifts enable you to make a lasting contribution to Special Olympics Maryland - Montgomery County at a level you may not have been able to achieve during your lifetime. Naming Special Olympics Maryland as a beneficiary in a Will or Living Trust, Insurance Policy or IRA/Retirement Plan are common examples of legacy gifts.

Discover the many ways you can support Special Olympics Maryland - Montgomery County through your estate plans and leave a legacy of acceptance, inclusion, and tolerance. For more information, please contact Sue Jacobs, VP of Donor Relations, at 410-242-1515 Ext. 104.

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