"Every human being has some level of competitive spirit inside. Sometimes the best thing that can happen is to let that spirit loose. The athletes we were fortunate enough to work with at the Special Olympics fit this description perfectly."
- Kim Anderson, President of ProSoft
This month we had the opportunity to volunteer with the Special Olympics and help with their softball and tee-ball games.
The Special Olympics' mission is to "
provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving them continuing opportunities 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." And that's exactly what they do! We witnessed genuine joy from the players, coaches, administrators and even our team!
We were asked to help keep score, announce, assist with skills workshops (throwing and catching the ball) and more. A couple of our tech guys even helped get the power turned on so that the microphones would work!
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| Our VP of Finance and a volunteer keeping score and announcing |
Our VP of Finance said: "What a great day! I feel so lucky to have been able to spend
the day with these amazing athletes. I’m pretty sure I was smiling the whole day and looking
forward to volunteering next year!"
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| ProSoft volunteers helping with a skills workshop |
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| Our VP and his wife keeping score and announcing |
There were teams from several universities in the area, including University of Utah, Brigham Young University, Weber State University, Utah State University and more. It was touching to watch players from opposite teams cheer each other on and hug one another after a game. They kept a positive attitude, even when they struggled to hit the ball or throw a good pitch. The coaches and administrators were encouraging and extremely supportive of their athletes.
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| Our IT Manager helping a player get to home base |
Our President had this to say about the day:
"As
we spent our day with these special athletes, it was a great thing to be able
to get to know them just a little bit. We found them to be fun-loving but
also serious about their sport and the effort they put forth. I consider
it an honor to have been able to work with them and being able to see their
softball skills. I look forward to doing it again soon. Hats off to
all the volunteers we met that day – from coaches, to umpires, to event
organizers, to the Special Olympics staff themselves... but especially to the
athletes’ friends and family that we met. Thanks to all for the great
opportunity."
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| Team members giving high-fives after scoring |
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| An audience member hugging a player after a good game |
It was an inspiring day that even included awarding medals to the tee-ball teams that played that day!
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| One of the winning tee-ball teams |
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| Our IT Manager awarding medals |
We are so grateful the Special Olympics allowed us to be a part of this day. We felt uplifted and amazed watching these teams perform. True to their hashtag, #MeetTheDetermined, we were surrounded by determined, inspiring people.
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