Monday, March 2, 2009

Thank You!

The Special Olympics 2009 World Winter Games cross-country skiing and snowboarding events held in Sun Valley, Idaho were exhilarating and a smashing success. Each morning, the sun was shining and a trace of snow blanketed the courses at the Sun Valley Resort.

Every four years, thousands of Special Olympics athletes from around the world come together to showcase their athletic skills in winter sports. The Special Olympics website describes the organization’s mission as providing “year-around training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports to children and adults with intellectual disabilities in order to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community.”

Sun Valley Resort hosted the cross-country and snowboarding events at the Nordic Center and Dollar Mountain. The cross country skiing competitions were held with approximately 440 athletes, coaches and officials representing 40 Special Olympics programs from around the world. There were 63 athletes from 15 countries competing in the snowboarding events. More athletes and more countries were represented at the 2009 World Winter Games than at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City, Utah.

My own participation created unique opportunities for growth, along with an increased awareness of life’s possibilities. The courage of the athletes was infectious. The athletes and spectators transcended every boundary: ethnic, geographical, political, cultural, and religious. My daily encounters made me wiser, more open, and less afraid. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to interact with a community of athletes who brimmed over with energy, enthusiasm, sportsmanship, and goodwill. Their radiant faces are imprinted in my memory and, for me, a summary of the games are the following words that were posted at the Presbyterian Church of the Big Wood: “Let Me Win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt!”

As a Sawtooth National Forest employee, this blog is my personal reflection on the competition and a vehicle to share photos. Thank you to everyone on the Sawtooth and Boise National Forests who helped make this event come to life. Thank you to Sun Valley Resort and the organizers of the 2009 World Winter Games for allowing the Sawtooth National Forest to participate in the magic of the Special Olympics. And finally, I would like to thank the following USDA Forest Service employees for their enthusiastic support and volunteerism:

Jill Allgood
Roger Anderson
Sara Baldwin
Beth Bratlie
Raymond Chambers
Stacey Clark
Carol Cole
Heath Cota
Andrea Cox
Liese Dean
Mike Dettori
Kevin Eldredge
Michelle Erdie
Dave Fluetsch
Bobbi Filbert
Jeff Gabardi
Lisa Kennedy
Jane Kollmeyer
Jill Kuenzi
Mike Krupski
Lisa Machnik
Cathy Miller
Joe Miczulski
Kurt Nelson
Scott Nannenga
Mike O’Farrell
David Olson
Debra Peters
Matt Phillips
Jim Rineholt
Steve Rogers
Chris Schenck
John Shelly
Edna Rey-Vizgirdas
Julie Thomas
Bill Whitaker
Mari Ziegler

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