Far West Suburban/ Area 2 News Spring /Summer 2015

A time of transition~ As most of you know, long-time Area Director, Sandy Hutchins has retired and in August made the permanent move to be near family in Virginia. Amanda and I will do our best to carry on the Area 2 tradition of quality events for our athletes and successful fundraisers to be able to sustain them. Thank you all for your well wishes both for Sandy and for us. LET THE GAMES GO ON!

Sports Round up and Results Area Bowling 225 bowlers competed in the June 7th tournament at District Softball the Brunswick Zone of Naperville. This was the 34th Area 2 was well represented by 5 Western DuPage year for the event in the same building! SRA teams and 2 Fox Valley SRA teams at the 2015 District B Softball tournament that was held August Our thanks to the many volunteers and to Marmion 2nd in Joliet. WDSRA Wildcats 2 took first place in Academy and Knights of Columbus Councils 1369 and their division and qualify to compete at the September 2601. A special thanks to Bob Miller and Joe Hlava who 12-13 Outdoor Sports Festival in Decatur. Our thanks spent the entire day walking up and down the lanes as to Kathy Green (SRJC) and the Joliet Park District for providing such a great facility ,terrific volunteers and our “Lane Rovers”. umpires. Thanks also to CITGO employees who came Gold medal winners move on to the sectional tourna- out to volunteer! ment November 7th in Rockford. Nice job bowlers! Area Golf SOILL Summer Games August 3rd was a beautiful day to be out on the golf course at Bart- Area 2 sent 207 athletes from 16 teams to the 2015 Spe- lett Hills. 61 Special Olympics ath- cial Olympics IL Summer Games at Illinois State Universi- letes played the traditional 9 Hole ty in Normal , June 12-14th. Over 4, 000 athletes competition and we were very from across the state competed in aquatics, track & field, pleased to have 18 individuals powerlifting, bocce, soccer and gymnastics events. It competing in the new Traditional 6 was a great weekend for athletes to showcase their abili- Hole format and 7 players compet- ties, meet new friends and reconnect with old ones. ing in the Traditional 3 Hole competition. Area Tennis Also– Area 2 had 14 athletes com- Unfortunately our 2015 Tennis Tournament at Marmion pete in Golf Skills hosted by Area 5 and 13 -2 person Academy was cancelled due to the forecasted tempera- teams competed in the Unified tournament hosted pre- ture and heat index. It is never easy to cancel an event, viously by Area 18. however the safety of our athletes, coaches, volunteers and spectators is our number one priority. SOILL has a First place winners in all formats will travel to Decatur in very specific cancellation policy which includes any of September 12-13 for the Special Olympics Illinois following forecasted or reached : Outdoor Sports Festival . ~Temperature above 95 degrees Our thanks to the Village of Bartlett, the staff at Bart- lett Hills Golf Course, Bob Gavelek , Ruth Beckner and ~Heat index 102 degrees many Bartlett residents, Marmion Academy and the K ~National Weather Service Heat Advisory issued of C St. Raphaels Council and all of the terrific volunteers who came out to help. The village of Bartlett and its citizens have been loyal supporters of Area 2 for 28 years. Village President, Kevin Wallace was on hand first thing in the morning to get golfers off to a good start. UPCOMING EVENTS….. Area 2 Fall Coaches’ Meeting It’s that time of year again! The 2016 Special Olympics season is almost here. Each fall any team interested in participating must send a coach or representative to the Sept. 12-13 SOILL Outdoor annual Fall Coaches’ Meeting. This year the meeting is schedule for Wednesday, Sports Festival September 16th from 6-8:30 at Giant Steps in Lisle. We are looking forward to Decatur discussing schedules, new opportunities, policies, procedures and a brief presenta- tion on working with individuals with autism by host, Paul Mutschler.

Sept. 16 Fall Coaches’ Meeting Coaches have been sent an EVITE but new teams are always welcome! If you are a coach interested in starting a team or if you are a parent in getting your child in- Lisle volved please contact: Amanda (630)377-7250 or [email protected] Special Olympics World Summer Games an Event to Remember Sept. 12-13 District Bocce This past July, Ryne Stolarz, a soccer player from Western DuPage Northlake Special Recreation Association in Carol Stream and Michele Thompson a gymnast from Fox Valley Special Recreation Associa- Sept. 27 Volleyball Qualifier tion traveled to Los Angeles to compete at Special Olympics World Summer Games. Ryne along with his teammates from LaGrange across the country took home the bronze medal in soccer! Michelle was also very successful in her events- bringing home Oct. 24 SOIL Fall Games the gold medal in Rhythmic Ball, Rope and All Around plus 2 additional bronze med- Rockford and Poplar Grove als. A once in a lifetime experience for both of them! Nov. 7 Sectional Bowling Rockford CALLING ALL VOLUNTEERS Are you ready for another exciting year of Special Olympics events? We’re looking forward to seeing you! An email will be coming your way this October which will in- SAVE THE DATE ! clude our 2016 schedule as well as a way to sign up on our new online registration sys- tem - CERVIS. Oct. 4 Pumpkin Pedal If you have any questions regarding volunteer opportunities please feel free to con- Bike Tour - Maple Park tact us at the Area 2 office- 6730-377-7250

Oct. 20 FVSRA MEDFEST METLIFE KICKBALL CLASSIC RETURNS Sports physicals for SO athletes Our friends at MetLife in Aurora have invited us back for the fall Kickball Classic. Some may remember this fun afternoon of team building– kickball games– music – FREE- Aurora refreshments and FUN! We are looking for 20-30 athletes to join forces with Met- Life employees on Wednesday, September 23 at the Metlife Corporate offices in Dec. 5 Holiday Party Aurora. Limited slots- so let us know ASAP if you are interested! Dinner & Auction Bartlett

WELCOME FVSRA Offers MEDFEST for Area Athletes Northern Illinois Academy in Fox Valley SRA , Advocate Health/Dreyer Clinic and Aurora University School of Nursing Aurora‐ have joined forces once again to provide FREE sports physicals for Special Olympics athletes in the Area- this year MEDFEST will be- Tuesday, October 20th— 4-8 pm at Head Coach– Bridget Mitchell the Vaughan Athletic Center on Indian Trail Rd in Aurora. Please call the Area 2 office if you are interested. Special Olympics athletes are required to have an APPLICATION FOR PARTICIPATION on file prior to practice. These forms are good for 2 years from the date of the doctor’s signature.

soill.org facebook.com/SOILLArea2 A word about our sponsors... Thanks to all of you who have participated in fundraisers, donated money or in-kind *SPECIAL DONATIONS* product or purchased souvenirs. You help make it possible for us to provide a wide variety *Knights of Columbus of quality competitions and experiences for our Area 2 athletes! Council # 11092 MIDWEST GOLF CELEBRITY PRO-AM—28th year! Knights of Columbus Council # 12497 Despite a rainy start our celebrity and amateur players had a great time while helping to raise over $35,000 for our area athletes. This year’s tournament was held on June Knights of Columbus 22nd at the exclusive The Royal Fox Country Club in St. Charles. This event is one of Council # 654 Area 2’s largest fundraisers and participants were once again very generous with their auction bids. Our thanks to Lisa Dent of US 99.5 who was our guest emcee for the * Hansen-Furnas evening program. Many thanks to all the volunteers who worked hard to make it fun Foundation, Inc. and successful and to the Advisory Committee for their dedication to this project. * PEO Sisterhood PRESENTING SPONSOR Diamond Sponsors * In Honor of Sandy Magnetrol International Corp Hutchins retirement River Front Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge/Ram * Northern Kane Educational Corp. Fun West Valley Graphics– St. Charles Run Gold Sponsors Hole Sponsors * In honor of Glen and Coca Cola Enterprise Oil Co. Lora Lee MacArthurs ’ FootJoy/Titleist Ford Motor Credit birthdays ADVISORY COMMITTEE High PSI, LTD Northland Equip. Co. Raymond Agrella Porte Brown Windshield Doctor Joe Cane Chicago Parts & Sound Ed Molitor Silver Sponsors Media Sponsors Jim Kuykendall Euclid Beverage Daily Herald Bill McSkimming Jennings Chevrolet US 99.5 Tim Layden Bill Ledvora Bob Miller Special thanks to the Basket Babes ~ Mike Mulrooney Mike Rosier Penny Brizzolara, Patti Dickens , Joelle Kelly

We’ve got some great fundraisers coming up— Be sure to mark you calendars ! Pumpkin Pedal Bike Ride for Special Olympics IL- October 4th Join the fun of the Pumpkin Pe- dal! This year’s 10, 20 & 26 mile trail rides will be entirely on the Great Western Trail. The 40 & 62 mile road rides will be on roads less traveled west of St. Charles. This is a wonderful ride for families and serious riders. New starting location– Sycamore Speedway—Rt. 64 in Maple Park . (Registration flyer attached) Knights of Columbus Tootsie Roll Drive- Local Knights of Columbus Councils will be out with their Tootsie Rolls and collecting donations for charities that serve individuals with developmental disabilities—and Area 2 Special Olympics is one of those lucky recipients. They are always in need of help with collection shifts - Septem- ber 11 or 12 . Call or email the Area 2 office if you can help for a couple of hours! The Special Gifts Holiday Party is always a great way to start off the holiday season. Saturday, December 5th at Bartlett Hills Golf Course. Dinner, music, auction. Invitations to be mailed soon. Interested– let us know. We are also seeking donation items or gift baskets for the silent auction. MetLife & Special Olympics Illinois Kickball Classic is BACK!

SEPTEMBER 23, 2015 3:00 PM – 5:30 PM

The MetLife Company cordially invites you to join them for an afternoon of kickball and fun. MetLife employees and Special Olympic athletes will compete side by side in the Kickball Classic.

Event Details: Getting to Know You We will start off the afternoon with a kickoff event where MetLife employees and Special Olympics athletes will select a team name, create team signs and cheers.

Play ball!! Teams will venture out to the lawn to play two 25 minute kickball games. Parents are encouraged to come cheer and enjoy the music that will be provided by our own DJ!

Congratulations Snacks, refreshments and awards will be provided during the Wrap Up Ceremony!

Location & Directions Please park in the MetLife Parking lot. There is no assigned parking spaces, feel free to park anywhere. Visitor spaces are available close to the building.

MetLife 177 South Commons Drive Aurora IL, 60504

From Route 88: Take Route 59 South to Ogden Ave. (Route 34) Take a right on Ogden Ave (Route 34) The MetLife building will appear on your right. Please park in the MetLife Parking lot.

Special Olympics athletes - RSVP by September 1 6th

To Amy Kaylor - Fax (630)377-7250 Phone (224) 325-8177 Email [email protected]

‘15

10, 20, 26 Mile Trail Rides 40, 62 Mile Road Rides Sunday, October• 4, 2015 Starting location Sycamore Speedway Rt. 64 • Maple Park, IL 60151