The Columbian -- August 3, 2008

Rebuilding Special Olympics Goal in Southwest Part of State

Before joining the Special Olympics years ago, Terry Babin’s stepdaughter, Angelina, was timid and shy. Now, the 25-year-old is skiing double...

By Isolde Raftery

VANCOUVER, Wash. — Before joining the Special Olympics years ago, Terry Babin’s stepdaughter, Angelina, was timid and shy. Now, the 25-year-old is skiing double black diamonds on Mount Hood.

So it made sense that Babin and his wife, Virginia, wanted to give back to the Special Olympics upon retiring.

But when they looked around, they found the program had dwindled in Clark County. Further, it no longer seemed to cater to elementary-aged children.

"We found out that this part of Washington was very active in the late 1990s but that budget issues, collective bargaining and No Child Left Behind pushed it aside," Babin said.

The average age of a Special Olympics participant in Clark County is now 22. That’s significant, considering 70 percent of participants programwide are 21 or younger.

Part of that, Special Olympics officials say, is because school districts had to trim budgets as finances tightened.

In the late 1990s, Clark County had one of the state’s more active Special Olympics chapters. But budget cuts led to the centralization of the program, and Vancouver, being so far from Seattle, didn’t receive as much attention.

Now, Seattle-based Special Olympics officials make regular visits to the area, hoping to rebuild the program.

Bill Southern Jr., one of those leading that effort, hopes to create partnerships between school districts to help relieve the cost. He has met with district officials and aims to locate facilities for Special Olympics activities.

"We need to get it back into the schools," he said. "We know their financial situations, so it’s about partnering."

The Special Olympics was founded 40 years ago by a Chicago teacher and Eunice Kennedy Shriver, a sister of President Kennedy.

The program has grown to include more than 2.5 million people in 180 countries. It caters to people with cognitive disabilities.

"All kids should have equal access to education that includes physical education," Southern said. "We don’t put kids in a pool and let them splash around."

As for Terry Babin, he credits the program for drawing out his stepdaughter. "It gave her the confidence to learn," he said. "She went from being a very shy and heavy-support person to holding a job."