By Daniel Smrokowski
Columnist | Column: Special Voices
My fellow athlete in Special Olympics, Susie Doyens, stood on the golf course of the Bartlett Hills Golf Club one day with her arms and legs outstretched in near perfect form. She was practicing her golf skills with her unified partner, Tom Reasoner.
Susie is a young adult just like any other typically developing adult her age. The quality that makes her different is that she was born with Down syndrome. Tom is the assistant director for the Illinois Law Enforcement Torch Run and the deputy director of administration for the North-East Multi-Regional Training Program for the Illinois law enforcement officers.
Both Susie and Tom have played unified golf for many years in Special Olympics Illinois and are breaking down barriers every day between people and without intellectual disabilities.
“As you can see, the barriers between Special Olympics athletes and yourself [those without disabilities] are being broken,” said Woodridge Police Officer Daniel McIntyre, who, among many Woodridge police officers, is active in fundraising for Special Olympics Illinois. “They’re not what they used to be when I was a child.”
Today, June 3, there are five days until the Unified Relay Across America comes to Illinois. The first-ever Unified Relay Across America is an event that will unify our nation as it delivers the Flame of Hope to Los Angeles for the Special Olympics World Games.
For many years, there were a lot of barriers for those of us with intellectual disabilities. Often times, the first perception is what we cannot do.
“I was scared and shy. It was hard to look at people’s faces,” said Susie Doyens in a public service announcement, titled “Speechless,” for Special Olympics Illinois. “I was afraid if I said something wrong, everyone would laugh at me.”
Similar to Susie, I was scared and shy that everyone would laugh at me because of the way that I spoke.
The barriers of humiliation changed for Susie, myself and millions of other athletes when we got involved in Special Olympics.
That is beginning to change within the Special Olympics movement, as many people are beginning to learn how to play unified — thanks to advocates such as Tim Shriver, chairman of Special Olympics worldwide. Tim encourages all people to play unified— both in sports and in other avenues of their lives.
“We can win the battle against humiliation and play unified to teach respect to the world over,” Tim said in a recent email correspondence.
This past May 26, the Unified Relay kicked off on the East coast on a cross-country trip, where people with and without intellectual disabilities are carrying the Flame of Hope to promote respect and inclusion for everyone.
Amid many areas of division within our country, the Unified Relay is about “bringing the whole country together behind our athletes,” said Janet Froetscher, CEO of Special Olympics.
The Unified Relay will be traveling through all 50 states for 46 days. The Unified Relay will separate to three different routes — north, central and south. Once it arrives in Los Angeles this July, the Law Enforcement Torch Run will pick it up and carry it into the Opening Ceremonies of the World Games on July 25.
“You are the stars, and the world is watching you,” said the late Eunice Kennedy Shriver, founder of Special Olympics. “By your presence, you send a message to every village, every city and every nation: A message of hope, a message of victory.”
Join me in getting involved with the Unified Relay Across America to celebrate our abilities and play unified with those of us with special needs.
Daniel Smrokowski is an Athlete and Global Messenger with Special Olympics Illinois on the Southeast Association for Special Parks and Recreation (SEASPAR) team. Daniel was born three-and-a-third months premature and was diagnosed with learning disabilities and a severe language (speech) disorder. He is the founder of Special Chronicles nonprofit new media company, a pioneering network that gives respect and voice to people with special needs. Come join us at www.stg-specialchronicles-staging.kinsta.cloud.
Editor’s Note: This Special Voices Column originally appeared in the Wednesday, June 3, 2015 issue of the Bugle Newspapers and is Reprinted with permission of the author. All rights reserved. Print/E-Edition (PDF)
