2019 State Bowling
(Registrations Due Today)
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The last of the 22 area bowling competitions was held on Saturday, October 26, which means it is officially time for State Bowling! On Saturday, November 23 our Annual State Bowling competition will take place in four locations. Athletes may participate in singles, doubles, team (four-person), Unified doubles (one SOIA athlete and one Unified partner), or a Unified team (two SOIA athletes with two Unified partners).
*Please note that lunch will not be provided during the State Bowling competition.
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2019 State Bowling locations
Westdale Bowl
, 2020 Scotty Dr, Cedar Rapids
Bowlerama
, 1313 E Diehl Ave, Des Moines
Merle Hay Lanes
, 3800 Merle Hay Rd, Des Moines
Thunderbowl
, 1900 Madison Ave, Council Bluffs
We are still looking for volunteers at all four locations! Sign up to volunteer by
clicking here.
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Linn-Mar High School Unified Pair Participates in Inclusive Youth Leadership Summit
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Last month, Unified pairs from across the country gathered at the 2019 Inclusive Youth Leadership Summit to explore their role as a leader in their school. At the summit each pair was challenged to create an action plan to make their school more Unified!
Special Olympics Iowa sent Grace and Heather, a Unified pair from Linn-Mar High School to take on the project. Grace and Heather came up with the idea to welcome a Unified pair into every club offered in their school! They have already taken action steps toward their goal and have created Unified clubs.
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Dubuque and River Hills Challenge Days
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The Dubuque Challenge Day was held on Friday, October 4 at Loras College. There was 69 athletes from Hills and Dales Group Home that participated, and 62 volunteers from Loras College Athletics that assisted with activities. The students from Loras College are a wonderful addition to this program each year.
The River Hills Challenge Day was held on Thursday, October 17 at River Hills School in Cedar Falls. Thirty-six at
hletes and 13 student volunteers from Gladbrook Reinbeck Schools participated in the event. Unique to this Challenge Day, 16 students from River Hills School also volunteered to help their fellow classmates participate in the adaptive sports activities.
These one-day events are centered around introducing team sports to the severe and profound population through activity stations. Each activity station includes a sports skill modified to allow youth and adults in the severe and profound population to participate. Volunteers are on site to assist with adaptive equipment and athletes as they participate
in the activity stations.
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Upcoming Regional Unified Sports
Training Days
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We are excited to share that the Southwest and Northwest Area Unified Sports Training Days will be happening this month. These one-day events are great opportunities for athletes to hone basketball and cheerleading skills while also receiving encouragement and coaching from Unified athletes.
Southwest Area Unified Sports Training Day
Tuesday, November 12 (9:30 AM to 2:00 PM)
Treynor Community School (102 east Main Street, Treynor)
Northwest Area Unified Sports Training Day
Thursday, November 14 (9:30 AM - 2:00 PM)
Washington High School (600 W Bluff Street, Cherokee)
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Meet your Midwest Region Unified U.S. Youth Ambassadors
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Joy Rector and Evie Sly of Des Moines’ Roosevelt High School have been selected by Special Olympics North America to be the Unified U.S. Youth Ambassadors for the Midwest Region. The pair's two year term began with a recent trip to Washington D.C. where they met fellow U.S. Youth Ambassadors, "talked inclusion" and strategized on how to help make inclusion a priority in schools nationwide. Joy and Evie also participated in a panel discussion where Educational Thought Leaders from across the nation were able to ask the pair questions about implementing inclusion in schools. We look forward to sharing their term with you over the next two years!
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Holiday Classic Basketball Tournament
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The Muscatine Special Olympics Iowa Holiday Classic Basketball Tournament will be held at the Muscatine Community YMCA on Saturday, December 14. The tournament will feature both 5-on-5 full court and 3-on-3 half court round-robin divisions. The event will kick off at 8:00 a.m. and conclude at approximately noon.
Each program is allowed to register up to two teams.
Register your teams by filling out this
form
and sending it to
jmiller@muscatiney.org
by Monday, December 2.
Jason Miller will notify programs of game times one week before the tournament.
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Special Olympics Iowa hosted a MedFest event at Ruby Van Meter School on Tuesday, October 22. The event provided an opportunity for over 100 current and new Special Olympics Iowa athlete to receive a free physical
.
In addition to free physicals, athletes were able to participate in three other Special Olympics Healthy Athletes® disciplines. FunFitness
provided
free screenings to identify needs and help improve flexibility, strength and balance. Special Smiles
offered free teeth screenings and mouth guards. Healthy Hearing
featured
free hearing screenings.
Events, like this one, through Special Olympics Healthy Athletes® programming is working to remove the anxiety athletes experience when visiting a medical professional, while also taking steps to diminish the disparities this population often encounters when trying to gain access to quality health care.
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The third Des Moines Public Schools Unified Sports Day was held on Tuesday, October 8
at the Knapp Center on the Drake University campus. Through the Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools® programming, Des Moines Public Schools high school students got the opportunity to hone leadership skills while putting on the Unified Sports Day. More than 400 middle school students from across the Des Moines Public Schools school district participated in this fun day of Unified sports.
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The Unified Sports Day at Upper Iowa University was held on Saturday, October 19. The Unified Sports Day brought together over 70 SOIA athletes and Upper Iowa University students for a day of Unified sports activities.
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State Volleyball 2019 Recap
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Over 300 Special Olympics Iowa athletes and Unified partners traveled to Iowa State University for the State Volleyball Tournament on October 12. Iowa State University’s Forker Building hosted the 32 team tournament that featured 6-on-6 team play and a developmental division. There was teams from Ames, Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, Glenwood, Davenport, Sheldon, West Des Moines and Woodward.
When athletes were not playing volleyball they had the opportunity to have their height, weight and blood pressure checked. They were also able to learn about skin care, tobacco safety, bone health, hydration and more through the Special Olympics Healthy Athletes® services.
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Get Your Football Tickets
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Special Olympics Iowa athletes, friends and family are invited to save on the purchase of Iowa State and Iowa football tickets. Gather your family and friends and enjoy discounted tickets to the games listed below:
-November 23 (Iowa vs. Illinois)
Iowa State University (Seats will be in sections K through P)
Order Here
-November 16 (ISU vs. Texas)
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IMT Des Moines Marathon
This year IMT Marathon chose SOIA as a charity of choice giving $10,000 to benefit our 16,000 athletes and Unified partners across the state! This was also the first year our athletes ran with Unified partners in the Principal 5k Road Race. Thank you IMT and our Unified runners for a great day!
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Kwik Star Icon Sales are BACK
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Support Special Olympics Iowa by purchasing a $1 icon at your local Kwik Star store between November 8 and November 14. Be sure to take a photo with your signed icon and share it with us by tagging @specialolympicsIA or using #specialolympicsiowa. Your photo just might be featured on the official Special Olympics Iowa social media accounts!
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Polar Plunge® - Ready, set, FREEZE
The fall Polar Plunge season has begun! Are you brave enough to face the cold and help raise money for Special Olympics Iowa? Check out the list of upcoming Polar Plunges below!
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Polar Plunge
Locations and Dates:
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12 Bars of Charity
Special Olympics Iowa is excited to be one of the eight charities for the 3rd Annual 12 Bars of Charity event. The 12 Bars of Charity is the holiday pub crawl that gives back to local charities. Grab your friends and register today to be part of Team Special Olympics Iowa.
Date:
Saturday, December 14
Location:
Court Ave., Des Moines
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Our Annual
Tailgate for Teammates
event took place on Saturday, September 29 at the West Des Moines Marriott. The event
offered a sense of camaraderie, inclusion and pride among athletes and their supporters. The evening included upscale tailgate cuisine, fun and festive sports-themed activities, and a silent auction. A grand total of $45,000 was raised. Thank you to all who donated and supported this event.
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O
n Saturday, October 5 over 100 trucks participated in the Truck Convoy for Special Olympics raising $45,000 for Special Olympics Iowa. Law enforcement officers escorted the trucks 20 miles from Exit 101 (Veterans Pkwy) off of Highway 5 to the Iowa State Fairgrounds for a post party at Jalapeno Pete's.
During the lead truck auction, TMC Transportation won the lead truck position, with Niece Trucking winning both the 2nd and 3rd truck positions. Thank you to everyone that came out and supported Special Olympics Iowa!
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Coaches' Guide Available Online!
The 2019-2020 SOIA Coaches' Guide is now available on our
website
!
Trainings
Becoming a coach and coaching re-certification is now easier than ever!
You can now become certified/re-certified
ONLINE
!
Contact
Dawn Criss
if you have any questions about coaching certification.
Registration Forms Available Online
Registration forms for Challenge Days and Young Athlete Play Days are now available online! Go to the
Participation Forms
page on our website to view registration forms for all SOIA events.
Share Your Story!
Do you know someone with a great story to share? We're always looking to share our athletes' stories in the newsletter. Please email
Karen Whitman
with your story ideas.
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Event Calendar
November
1-Council Bluffs Young Athletes Play Day
2-State Flag Football Tournament and Skills Competition
3-Fort Dodge Polar Plunge®
3-Intramural Unified Volleyball (Drake University)
3-Unified Volleyball Intramurals (St. Ambrose University)
7-Buena Vista University Unified Sports Day
7-Muscatine Young Athletes Play Day
8 & 9-Athlete Leadership Conference
10-Intramural Unified Volleyball (Drake University)
10-Unified Volleyball Intramurals (St. Ambrose University)
12-Southwest Area Unified Sports Training Day
14-Northwest Area Unified Sports Training Day
15-Northeast Area Rollerskating
16-Dubuque Polar Plunge®
17-Intramural Unified Volleyball (Drake University)
23-State Bowling
December
2-NAIA Volleyball Special Olympics Clinic
7-University of Iowa Unified Sports Day
8-West Des Moines Polar Plunge®
14-Holiday Classic Basketball Tournament
January
7-Southwest Area Basketball Skills
13 & 14-Winter Games
18-East Area Conference Basketball (Team & Skills)
18-South Central Basketball Skills
23-North Area Basketball Skills
25-Northwest Area Basketball Skills
28-Central Area Basketball Skills
30-West Central Area Basketball Skills
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