Special Olympics Nanaimo
December Newsletter

While things are still uncertain, it has been great launching a few more programs this fall and welcoming back so many smiling faces. We thank all of our athletes and volunteers for your dedication to sport!

A reminder for everyone to stay active and healthy over the holidays and we look forward to seeing you in the new year!

Unfortunately, the SO Nanaimo community has lost two members of our organization over the past few months, Bob Jordan (pictured) and Norm Fulla.

Bob was a long-time coach and volunteer with Special Olympics Nanaimo serving in many different roles as needed for the organization. Many people would have met Bob and his family through his work with foster children and his son Orrin who is an active athlete with us still. Bob will always be remembered for having a very close relationship with Santa Claus at our Christmas parties.

Norm was a volunteer with our 5-pin bowling program that loved being at the lanes to help out with scorekeeping and supporting the athletes. He loved spending time with the athletes and seeing their achievements.

Both of them will be missed by all of us at Special Olympics Nanaimo and our thoughts go out to their families.

Happy Thanksgiving long weekend everyone! I hope you all have a chance to safely get active outside and spend some time with friends and family!

A quick update on where we’re at in terms of programs for the fall. We’ve had a great response from athletes and we’re rebuilding our list of volunteers and we’re excited to get 5-pin bowling running again next weekend!

Unfortunately though we’ve also ran into some facility issues that are affecting our other programs. The school district is still not allowing public bookings of their gyms and they plan to revisit that in the next couple of weeks. We were all excited to get back to the pool at Beban Park but you may have seen the pool broke just before they planned on re-opening so swimming has been delayed a few more weeks. And last but not least, the track behind NDSS is being resurfaced so we’re unable to use it as well.

Rest assured we are working as quickly as possible to get as many programs up and running again soon!

Here are the programs we’re hoping to get running again:

Monday: 10-pin Bowling, Basketball
Tuesday: Swimming
Wednesday: Track and Field
Thursday: Swimming
Saturday: 5-pin Bowling

A reminder that we aren’t collecting registration fees this year. Sport specific fees for programs like bowling, swimming and skating will still be collected once programs are running again though.

SOBC has recently released an updated Communicable Disease Plan which has enabled us to consider offering more sports once again. The SOBC Return to Sport Communicable Disease Prevention Plan contains strong safety protocols to deal with the ongoing concerns around COVID-19, as well as enduring principles for everyone’s benefit. The communicable disease prevention approach currently includes:

• Starting September 13, proof of COVID-19 vaccination for all participants and volunteers ages 12 and up;
• Sport training group sizes maximum 50;

• Athletes and coaches can participate in more than sport at a time;
• Continued mask wearing off the fields of play;
• An emphasis on staying home when you are sick;
• Enhanced cleaning, hand washing, and ventilation;
• Maintaining the safety volunteer role for every SOBC program and event

You’ll notice that Special Olympics BC’s safety protocols remain heightened. We are committed to the safety of our community, to following the provincial health requirements, and to meeting the expectations of facilities needed for SOBC programs and events. If you would like to see the full Communicable Disease Plan please visit: https://www.specialolympics.ca/british-columbia/return-sport.

We are once again asking all athletes and volunteers to fill out their registration forms if you haven’t already so that we have your updated information and can keep you updated on program restarts. To help you in this process we have planned to host an in-person registration night on September 28th and the information for that can be found below. To encourage everyone to get their paperwork done, all athletes that are registered by Oct 1st will be entered into a draw for a Vancouver Canucks Jersey!

While we don’t have a finalized calendar of sports for the fall yet, based on previous years and volunteer capacity, here are the programs we’re exploring offering at this time:

Monday: 10-pin Bowling, Basketball
Tuesday: Swimming
Wednesday: Track and Field
Thursday: Swimming
Saturday: 5-pin Bowling

We all know that things are still a little unsettled and as a result, we won’t be collecting registration fees for programs this year. Sport specific fees for programs like bowling, swimming and skating will still be collected once programs are running again though.

We look forward to seeing everyone soon!

Our friends at West Coast Amusements have gifted Special Olympics Nanaimo with a limited number of coupons good for ride wristbands at the VIEX. Wristbands are typically $40 each at the ticket booth. Please note that you will still have to pay the $5 entry per person to the VIEX though.

Since we want to spread out the coupons to as many athletes as possible we’re going to limit them to 4 per household and we’ll give them out on a first come first served basis. To reserve yours please respond to this email as soon as possible.

VIEX WCA Schedule:
Friday: Opens at noon and closes at 10pm
Saturday: Opens at noon and closes at 10pm
Sunday: Opens at noon and closes at 6pm

**Closing times dependent on weather and guest attendance

For more info please visit: westcoastamusements.com.

I hope you are all enjoying a fantastic summer and haven taken advantage of the warm weather to get outside and stay healthy! As the end of summer is sneaking up on us many of you have naturally started to ask about our Fall sports and I’m happy to share the registration info for the upcoming year.

We are asking for all athletes and volunteers to fill out their registration forms so that we have your updated information and can better plan for the upcoming year. We’re hoping for a more normal return to sport in October but we all know that things are still a little unsettled. As a result, we won’t be collecting registration fees until your programs are confirmed.

We look forward to seeing everyone soon!

Special Olympics Nanaimo
July Newsletter

The annual meeting for Special Olympics Nanaimo was held on July 8th and elections for committee positions were held at that time. Thankfully many familiar faces are continuing on in their role with the committee:

Local Coordinator – Dave Forrester
Program Coordinator – Angela Behn
Treasurer – Heiko Behn
Secretary – Tracey Murphy
Registration Coordinator – Deborah Munday
Fundraising Coordinator – Jacky Sheng
Parent Representative – Heather Phillips
Volunteer Coordinator – Vacant

The local committee meets the third Thursday of each month and if you would like to bring something to our attention please don’t hesitate to touch base with one of the committee members or email us at so.nanaimo.local.coordinator@gmail.com.

On behalf of the local committee, volunteers and athletes we want to say thank you to the committee members that have completed their terms with SO Nanaimo. This has been a challenging period for the local and we’re grateful for all that you do for Special Olympics and hope to see you continue to volunteer with the organization in other roles!

Geoff Lowe – Local Coordinator
Marcela Mulcahy – Program Coordinator
Kate Lowe – Secretary

All of us are eagerly anticipating and hopeful for a more normal return to sport this fall. With that in mind the local committee has already been discussing plans for the upcoming year. Considering that things may change here’s how we see the next couple of months playing out:

August: Registration info will be sent out to athletes and volunteers

September: We’re planning to host a welcome back type event for all volunteers and athletes. Date and details to be confirmed. We’ll also be organizing a coaches meeting for this month.

October: Due to the uncertainty of facility availability we are hopeful for a return to sport programs in early October.

While we wait for programs to start again this Fall, Special Olympics BC wants to help everyone stay active, healthy, moving – and having fun!

All athletes are encouraged to join the #SOBCSuperSummer Wellness Challenge to stay active together and be ready for the next sport season!

This eight-week calendar includes:

Daily workouts and wellness challenges

Trainer Tuesday Facebook Live workouts weekly July 6 to August 24

Chances to win prize packs

Joining the SOBC Wellness Challenges Facebook Group to share encouragement and motivation

Full registration and challenge details can be found here.

TheSpecial Olympics BC Provincial Challenge Games were a huge success, thanks to the determination and spirit shown by about 1,000 athletes and volunteers from all over the province!

From May 1 to June 18, the Challenge Games athletes completed 49 days of at-home challenges including sport training sessions, workouts, and wellness activities. They showed remarkable dedication as well as creativity in the range of ways they stayed active. Congratulations to all of the SO Nanaimo athletes and training coaches that represented us so well!

SO Nanaimo athlete Miranda Orth (pictured above) wrote a report on the experience and you can read it here. Great job Miranda!

If you have SO Nanaimo stories, results and pictures to share for the newsletter please send them to SOnewsnanaimo. Feedback on the newsletter always welcome!

Special Olympics Nanaimo

Special Olympics Nanaimo
June Newsletter

Well what a year it has been! Starts and stops, different looking programs at different times of the year, virtual games and soooooo much zoom! Despite it all I’ve been encouraged by the athletes and coaches that continue to give so much to Special Olympics. With Winter Sport Regional Qualifiers taking place next year I have no doubt your hard work will pay off!

I for one am hopeful for a more normal return to our sport programs in the Fall and I know we can’t wait until we get to see many of you again! The first step to that return is the hosting of our annual meeting which will take place on Thursday, July 8 at 6:30pm. As long as the provincial health restart plans stay on track we plan to hold this meeting at the soccer/softball fields at Beban Park (the natural grass ones not the turf). Weather permitting and please bring a chair.

We will be providing an update on the local and holding elections for the committee this evening. If you have any questions, interest volunteering on the committee or in the direction of the local, I look forward to hearing from you!

The top priorities for the upcoming year are going to be very simple:
1. Secure facilities for our programs
2. Increase the number of volunteer coaches
3. Welcoming back our athletes

Everyone welcome to attend and I hope to see many of you there!

How It Works:

1. Register with us if you haven’t already this year! A reminder that registration is free this year. If you are already registered just reply to this email to let us know you would like to participate in the Games. Each registered Games participant that completes the challenge activities through the months of May and June will receive a Games uniform piece. If you haven’t registered yet please fill out the sobcnanaimoreg.
2. Complete the challenges in the SOBC Provincial Challenge Games calendars. There will be daily physical and wellness activities! Training group leaders will connect weekly with their local athletes to provide encouragement and help track points. (Training group leaders do not have to be trained coaches. Interested parents and administrative volunteers are encouraged to get involved!)
3. Help your Regional team claim top spot in the province! While this event will not be a qualifier, every challenge activity that an athlete completes will earn points toward your Regional team’s total. Plus, athletes who complete their challenges will be entered in weekly prize draws! Regional team point totals will be averaged based on the number of participants per team, so every Region has the potential to come out on top – no matter their size!
4. Experience the Games spirit by connecting with your local training group and your Regional team, and by attending the virtual ceremonies!
   Virtual Opening Ceremony on Facebook Live, April 29 at 6:30 p.m. PT
   Virtual Closing Ceremonies on Facebook Live, June 23 to 24

The challenge calendars will be very similar to those SOBC has offered throughout the past year – check out the past calendars for examples. But there will be some new activities and new creative ways to win points!

Timeline:

APRIL 12 TO 30: Registration!

• Each registered Games participant that completes the challenge activities through the months of May and June will receive a Games uniform piece.
• Registration closes April 30.

MAY 1 TO JUNE 18: SOBC Provincial Challenge Games Competition!

• SOBC hosts a virtual Provincial Challenge Games Opening Ceremony on April 29 at 6:30 p.m. PT.
• SOBC issues a Provincial Challenge Games activity calendar for each month and maintains a leaderboard tracking regional team rankings.
• Athletes complete challenges and count their points.
• Training group leaders connect at least once a week with athletes and submit points to team.
• Regional teams come together virtually for monthly pep rallies.

JUNE 23 TO 24: SOBC Provincial Challenge Games Ceremonies!

• Virtual awards, dance parties, and more.

Are you ready to compete, connect, and take on a challenge? Be part of the 2021 Special Olympics BC Provincial Challenge Games!