Strong Showing for North Kingstown at Special Olympics

KINGSTON – The weather might have been gloomy outside, but nothing could dampen the spirits of those who competed, coached, cheered and volunteered at the 44th Special Olympics State Summer Games this past Saturday at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston.

Rain may have caused the postponement of the soccer and cycling events and forced the Olympic Village to relocate inside Keaney Gymnasium, rather than the more spacious field behind the athletic buildings, but everyone made the best of the situation.

North Kingstown had one of the largest contingents at the Games. At Saturday’s track and field events, 33 athletes representing the town won 40 awards.

Hayden Duckworth captured a team-high three medals on the day for his performance in the 50-meter dash (silver), the 100-meter dash (gold) and the softball toss (bronze) in the 12 – 15 age group.

Participating in Special Olympics has done a lot to ease Duckworth’s social anxiety.

“It gets him out of the house and involved in some healthy competition,” said Duckworth’s father, Shane. “He’ll go in public places now and he looks forward to practice. What it’s done for his social skills is huge.”

Shane praised the efforts of head coach , who was the first coach inducted into the Special Olympics Rhode Island Hall of Fame.

“Lisa deserves so much credit,” said Duckworth. “We’re lucky to have her in town.”

Steve Pukas, who won a gold medal in the softball toss in the 30 and over age group, credited McKay for his involvement in Special Olympics.

“I was a free agent at the time,” recalled Pukas. “Lisa recruited me.”

Pukas has competed in many sports throughout his career, including basketball, soccer, volleyball, flag football, softball and track.

“I’ve been competing for so long, I’ve lost count of how many awards I’ve won,” said Pukas.

The 36 year old has also been involved in some non-traditional sports. He was part of race car driver Mike Stefanik’s pit crew for a few years and has managed on the independent professional wrestling circuit.

Pukas’ teammate, Matthew Beauvais, is another multi-sport athlete whom McKay brought onto the team.

His approach to the softball toss competition was to just try his best.

“I’ve been showing up for the practices, so today I’m just going to get out there and hum it as far as I can,” said Beauvais, who started competing in 1980.

A resident of Narragansett, Beauvais is known in town as the Mayor of Bristol Road.

Throughout the weekend, 1,400 athletes from all over Rhode Island competed in the Summer Games. In addition, 500 coaches and 500 volunteers helped everything run smoothly.

“Our staff and game management folks do a great job,” said Dennis DeJesus, CEO of Special Olympics Rhode Island. “Each year we have more people who want to spend the weekend with us as volunteers and the teams look better and are better organized each year.”

Although DeJesus was pleased with the turnout, an effort is underway to increase the number of people involved in the program. Special Olympics International has challenged each local organization to increase its participation by 25 percent over the next five years.

“The only way we’ll be able to achieve that goal is to get the City of Providence more involved,” stated DeJesus. “We need a commitment from the school department and the city. But, there are obstacles that need to be overcome with regards to facilities, transportation and leadership, not to mention the challenges that traditionally come with trying to add programs in the inner-city.”

One program that has been embraced by many school departments in Rhode Island is unified sports. Over the last couple of years, several high schools have added unified basketball and/or volleyball teams, in which students with disabilities compete alongside their peers, known as partners.

“The unified sports have been a tremendous success story,” said DeJesus. “Two years ago, we had 10 basketball teams in the league. We now have 28 teams.”

DeJesus pointed out that the unified sports are entirely funded through a federal grant, adding no expense to the school departments.

“I couldn’t be happier that these kids get to compete for their schools, while wearing their school colors, just like all the other athletes,” said the director. “It’s all about inclusion, acceptance and respect for these athletes. It’s equally important to the partners who compete with them.”

Athletics are one way in which those with disabilities can gain a sense of pride and achievement, but it’s by no means the only way.

“Forty years ago we used to segregate those who had a disability,” recalled DeJesus. “Now they play in our community, they work in our community and they contribute to our community.”

Despite the downturn in the local economy in recent years, Special Olympics Rhode Island has only lost one sponsor in the three years DeJesus has been CEO, while adding five sponsors in 2012 alone.

“Everyone is aware of the difference Special Olympics makes in people’s lives,” said DeJesus. “Companies want to partner with an organization that has a track record of doing things the right way.”

Special Olympics also has a great partnership with city and state police officers, firefighters and correction officers.

“They raise $200,000 a year at events all over the state,” said DeJesus. “We’re so proud to have them participate in our torch run and hand out the ribbons and medals at the podium. The athletes really look up to them.”