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SOO-Guelph Volunteer, Steve Redmond, Inducted into Guelph Sports Hall of Fame
Taken from The Fountain Pen: http://www.thefountainpen.com/s/showstory?id=113722013 Guelph Sports Hall of Fame Inductees AnnouncedWeb posted on August 07, 2013 Guelph, On, August 7, 2013 The Guelph Sports Hall of Fame Board of Directors is pleased to announce the names of the 2013 inductees who will be inducted at a ceremony in October. This year's inductees are athlete Todd Hlushko, veteran athlete Lt.-Col. John Steele, builder Steve Redmond, official Frank Cecchetto and the 1939 Guelph Leaflets. The induction ceremony will take place during the annual Kiwanis Sports Celebrity dinner on the evening of Wednesday, October 23 at the Italian Canadian Club. Tickets are $80 for adults and $35 for students 17 and under. For more information or to purchase tickets, call 519-822-4900 extension 2844. Inductee Bios Builder Steve Redmond In 2000, Redmond established the 1st Guelph Special Olympics Youth Basketball program. He has been the head coach since the beginning and the program now has 80 athletes, four teams and 21 coaches. He has organized for 11 years the Guelph Invitational Basketball Tournament which is one of the largest in the province. In 2002, Redmond had a vision for a Guelph Special Olympics Schools Track and Field meet and worked hard with a committee of community volunteers to make it a reality. He has convened the track meet for 11 years and it now has 500 students with disabilities from 63 schools participating and has become a model for the rest of the province. In 2007-2008, Redmond worked on an Athletics Canada pilot project with Paralympics Canada to modify the Run/Jump/Throw program for athletes with disabilities. In 2009 he was selected by Special Olympics Canada to be part of their long term planning team responsible for establishing volunteer, youth ambassador and family network national programs. Redmond received the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012. Redmond was an outstanding all round athlete with provincial championships in five different sports: badminton, football, track and field, fastball and volleyball. For more than 40 years he has coached athletes at all levels including coaching the Guelph Special Olympics Basketball team to provincial gold in 2008 and provincial silver in 2012. He continues to coach and mentor young coaches. |
SOO-Brantford Athletes Honoured at Brantford Red Sox Game
Taken from the Brantford Expositor online site.Sox honour fundraiser 6Expositor Staff Wednesday, July 24, 2013 9:52:30 EDT PM Don't worry if you were at the Metro on St. Paul Avenue at about 8 p.m. Wednesday and didn't see John Procee. He had to leave his usual spot by the grocery store exit where he collects money for Special Olympics to handle another duty. Procee, who has collected thousands of dollars over the years by selling birdhouses, was at the Brantford Red Sox game where he threw out the ceremonial first pitch. A former client of Community Living Brant, Procee has been collecting money through the sale of birdhouses for more than 15 years now and in that time has raised more than $150,000 for Special Olympics. The birdhouses are made by Jim Wilson, a retired Brantford firefighter and former neighbour, who befriended Procee as a child. Procee was chosen to throw out the first pitch at the Red Sox game on a night that celebrates the community's Special Olympians. Special Olympic athletes from a range of sports were on the field prior to the game to be recognized by the Red Sox fans and players. "John was an excellent choice to throw out the first pitch," John Bradford, a director with the Brant chapter of Ontario Special Olympics, said prior to the game. "He has done so much for this community and so much for Special Olympics. "The Special Olympic athletes in our community get support from Special Olympics Ontario but as good as that is, it only goes so far. The support these athletes get from John's efforts help cover the costs of uniforms and transportation." He noted that a lot of Special Olympic athletes recently returned from a major competition and brought 27 medals home with them. |
SOO-Kitchener-Waterloo Hosts Successful Dirty Dash Fundraiser
Taken from therecord.com Runners get dirty for good cause WATERLOO — This was not your typical race. More than 700 people jumped over hay bales, waded across a river and attempted to run, wallow and crawl through a 21-metre (70-foot) long mud pit for the annual Dirty Dash at Bechtel Park on Sunday. The Dirty Dash, organized by the Waterloo Running Series, is a fun running or walking event that promotes fitness while raising funds for the Kitchener-Waterloo chapter of Special Olympics Ontario. Participants of all ages could race in the four- or eight-kilometre events, or take part in a one-kilometre kids "fun run." "I think it embraces the spirit of Special Olympics. We're here to promote sport and have a good time, but we're also here to compete," said Jennifer Mondell, fundraising co-ordinator for Special Olympics. For serious runners, the event offered a more challenging terrain and exciting atmosphere than the typical five- or 10-kilometre race. "It gives (runners) an opportunity to maybe not be as competitive and have a bit of fun," said event organizer Lloyd Schmidt. The event raised over $7,000 for Special Olympics K-W and saw record numbers take part. Waterloo Running Series is also planning a new "colour run" where participants will get splashed with paint along the course. The Colour Run will be held on Aug. 24 and proceeds from the event will support local charities. |
SOO-Windsor Athletes Experience Success at 2013 Provincial Summer Games
Laura Weidner and Barry Green Names SOO-Cambridge Athletes of the Year
Taken from the Cambridge Times online site.Athletes of the year named by local Special Olympics groupCambridge Times Celebrated for their attitude and their ability to get along with others, as well as attendance and participation, Laura Weidner and Barry Green have been chosen as the local Special Olympics athletes of the year. “They’re very high functioning, very friendly and outgoing – dedicated, I guess you could say,” explained Sandra Goodwin, who coaches the five- and 10-pin bowling programs, as well as floor hockey. She is also the community co-ordinator for Special Olympics Ontario – Cambridge. “They were all really happy to get them,” she added of the awards. Weidner bowls in the five-pin bowling program. She is known for always having a smile on her face and trying her best. Green bowls in the five- and 10-pin programs, as well as playing basketball and floor hockey and rarely misses a week of any activity. He was at the provincial games in Kingston last year and is waiting to see if he qualifies to go to the nationals in British Columbia next year. The group’s third major award, the Kevin Largey Memorial Swimming Achievement Trophy, was presented to 15-year-old Cooper Moore – one of the youngest local Special Olympians in any sport. “He has participated in several swim meets and has improved greatly this year,” Goodwin explained of why Moore was chosen as recipient. “Cooper is a friendly young man and tries very hard each week.” The award is named in honour of a coach who was killed in a collision with a train. |
Community Athlete Leads School Team to Championship
 Andrew's former teachers and regular coaches of the team, Mr.
Rubenstein and Mr. Lunn saw this as a great opportunity for Andrew to
develop his coaching skills and see the game from the coach point of
view.
Andrew came dressed to lead in a suit and tie, with briefcase and
official line up forms for the score table. He went into the
Championship game with a 2 and 1 record, only losing one game by 1
basket. The Championship game pitted rivals St. David's and Centennial
who played only 1 hour before in a very heated back and forth game. In
the end, Centennial rose victorious to a 12-11 win.
Centennial CVI has been attending this tournament for 5 years and this is their first Championship finish. |
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