2016 Special Olympics Vermont Sailing Pilot Program

Greetings Chittenden Program!

Special Olympics Vermont will be hosting an Open House at the Lake Champlain Community Sailing Center for the second year of its Sailing pilot program on Saturday, July 16^th 1pm-4pm. The Open House is for athletes and partners who are excited to commit to the training schedule outlined below.

The Open House will provide an overview of sailing in a two part on land and on boat orientation. Attendee spots are limited and will be offered on a first come, first served basis. Individuals must RSVP to Justin Graham atjgraham@vtso.org, 802.861.0280.

Individuals who register for the Open House should be able to commit to the Sailing training season noted below. Please keep in mind, because there is limited boat capacity as well as boat availability at competition, not all participants who register for the Open House will be selected to participate in the Sailing program.

Sailing Training and Competition

Begins: Week of August 1^st , 5 week commitment

Practices: Group 1 - Mondays or Group 2 – Wednesdays, 5pm – 8pm

Location: Lake Champlain Community Sailing Center

Competition: Sailing Regatta, Rhode Island, Saturday, September 17^th

Following the Open House, athletes and partners selected will be required to assist in fundraising efforts to help supplement the cost of attending the Fall Regatta in Rhode Island.

Please contact Justin Graham with any questions,

Justin

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Justin Graham

Sports & Competitions Manager

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Special Olympics Vermont

16 Gregory Dr. Suite 2

South Burlington, VT 05403

Tel 802 861 0280

Cell 906 364 6875

Fax 802 863 3911

Email jgraham@vtso.org

Twitter @SOVT

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www.SpecialOlympicsVermont.org

2016 Chittenden Soccer Practice

Dear Athletes, Parents, Guardians, and Caregivers:

On behalf of the entire volunteer coaching staff let me welcome you to the Chittenden Delegation’s 2016 Soccer Program.

Special Olympics requires that a current medical be on site at every practice and competition. Please contact Dave Bogdan (dbogdan@ieee.org or 802-865-3840) to pre-register so that we can have your medical at practice. We no longer allow athletes to begin practice without a current medical. Medicals are good for three years from the date of exam.

We are happy to announce that this year’s program officially begins on Tuesday, August 16th at 5:45 pm at our practice field located at the Willey Family Farm in back of the Fairgrounds in Essex Junction. Take the back entrance to the Fairgrounds (also road to St James Church) right to the Fairgrounds gate and park in the stone parking area.  The fields are just to the right of the access road – roughly ¼ mile up from Route 2A.

Practices will be held every Tuesday and Thursday from 5:45 pm – 7:00 pm right up to the Special Olympics Vermont Statewide Tournament at Norwich University on Saturday, October 15th.

You can expect that our coaches will be working with each athlete to have fun, to teach the game, to build a sense of teamwork and most importantly promote good sportsmanship in practice and in competition.

You can expect that our coaches will treat all athletes, parents, guardians, and caregivers with respect and ask you to provide that same level of respect to our coaches and to other athletes.

We ask you to comply with the Special Olympics of Vermont’s Spectator Guidelines which is attached. In addition, we ask you to review with your athlete the Special Olympics Vermont Athlete Code of Conduct form then sign and return it to me as soon as possible.

Like last year, we will be organizing athletes into three groups to maximize their skill development while maintaining our focus on safety for all athletes.

As coaches, we have an expectation that athletes will arrive on time for practice and will be are picked up on time at the conclusion of practice --- as our volunteer coaches have commitments as well. We will also make an extra effort to end practice on time.

As coaches, we have an expectation that each athlete will arrive wearing a team purple practice t-shirt, black shorts, soccer cleats, shin guards, with a water bottle, and a soccer ball --- ready to play.

If you have an issue of concern, please call me at 802.598.3123 so we can resolve it as soon as possible.

Dedicated to keeping it fun, safe, and respectful,

Head Coach Giles Willey

PS.
With regard to inclement weather, please go to the Chittenden Delegation website/blog located at http://sovchittenden.blogspot.com to learn if practice is canceled. Once practice has been canceled for the day, it will not be changed even if the weather improves later in the day!

PPS.
In order to keep expenses down, we will again be car pooling to the Statewide Tournament at Norwich University. So please consider helping us in this regard, if possible. 

Support Special Olympics Chittenden and the Vermont Lake Monsters

St. Thomas Knights of Columbus will hold their Annual Father's Day Breakfast

The St. Thomas Knights of Columbus will hold their Annual Father's Day Breakfast on Sunday, June 19, 2016 from 8:00 to 10:30 am in the Parish Hall, 6 Green St, Underhill Center.  The buffet style breakfast will include juice, fruit, eggs, pancakes, sausage, bacon, home fries, and coffee or tea.  The cost is by donation.  Bring the whole family!  Treat Dad like the special person he is and enjoy this delicious breakfast!  For further information, please call the church office at 899-4632.

Proceeds to benefit the Special Olympics Vermont Chittenden team!

Run with the Law Enforcement Torch Run into the Opening Ceremony of Summer Games!

Run with the Law Enforcement Torch Run into the Opening Ceremony of Summer Games!

Distance: 1 mile

Date: June 3

Join Law Enforcement Torch Run participants for a BBQ at 5:00 am at the Windjammer Conference Center. The Torch Run will commence promptly at 6:30 pm.

Start location:

Windjammer Conference Center
1076 Williston Rd, South Burlington, VT 05403
(map)

End location:

Summer Games Opening Ceremonies
UVM Roy L. Patrick Gymnasium
(map)

Register here: http://specialolympicsvermont.org/forms/athlete-letr-final-leg-registration/

Sports Season Reorganization

All, you may have heard the rumors or seen the news that Special Olympics Vermont is reorganizing our sports seasons. You may see the announcement, read about reasons for the change and see the transition schedule here:
http://specialolympicsvermont.org/stories/2016/04/sports-season-reorganization/

One of the key features of the reorganization is that there will be four major competition events with multiple sports to choose from for each event. Athletes (and coaches) will have to choose which sport they want to participate in.

There are many proposed new sports to be offered. Special Olympics Vermont is conducting a sports interest survey available here:
http://specialolympicsvermont.org/forms/new-sports-survey/

The results of this survey will be used to select which sports to offer in the future. Please note that local programs like ours, may not offer all sports available through Special Olympics Vermont. Chittenden will strive to offer as many sports as possible but will require new coaches, equipment, facilities and funds to be able to expand our program.

I look forward to working with everyone as we move through this transition. Change is hard, let's make the best of it!  Dave

2016 Special Olympics Vermont Summer Games

Summer Games will be the weekend of June 3rd through June 5th at The University of Vermont. Friday evening dinner will be provided to credentialed individuals. Meals are provided for credentialed individuals Saturday evening through Sunday afternoon. 

The theme of the Saturday evening dance is "Hollywood", get ready for the red carpet!

For those staying overnight at the UVM dorms, you must bring twin sized bed linen and blanket, pillow, toiletries and towels. Our delegation will be charged for any damage or missing items and also for keys that are not returned. Please be considerate of our host facility and also remember to turn in your keys.

Both the University of Vermont and Special Olympics Vermont are going "Green" so during competition water will be provided in bulk dispensers, please bring your own reusable water bottle to fill. Please make sure your name is on the water bottle!

Competition events will continue in bad weather unless there is thunder or lightning. Please watch the weather forecast and plan accordingly!

The Special Olympics Vermont Summer Games Handbook is available ==> here <==. This handbook has a much more detailed schedule and lots of good information about the weekend. A simplified schedule is here:

Event Schedule

Friday June 3:

  4:00 -  5:00 pm - Check in for those staying overnight in the UVM dorms - Redstone campus

  5:00 -  6:15 pm - Dinner at Indoor Tennis Courts

  6:15 -  6:45 pm - Line up for opening ceremonies parade of athletes - Indoor Tennis Courts

  7:00 pm – Opening Ceremonies - Patrick Gym
  8:30 pm - Coaches meeting - South hallway behind Patrick Gym

Saturday May 30:

 7:00  -  8:00 am - Breakfast - Indoor Tennis Courts
 8:00 am - Shuttle bus to Softball
 9:00  -  4:00 pm - Competition and Awards

 9:45  -  3:30 pm - Healthy Athletes and Olympic Town - Indoor track

10:30 - 12:00 pm - Health Forum for families and caregivers - Patrick Gym
11:45 - 1:30 pm - Lunch (varies by sport)

 5:30  -  6:30 pm - Dinner - Indoor Tennis Courts
 6:15  - Coaches meeting
 6:30  -  8:00 pm - Victory dance - "Hollywood" - Patrick Gym

Sunday May 31:
 7:00  -  8:00 am - Breakfast - Indoor track

 7:30  -  2:30 pm - UVM Housing Checkout (you must hand in you keys)
 8:00 am - Shuttle bus to Softball
 8:45  -  1:00 pm - Competition and Awards
11;30 -  1:30 pm - Lunch - Indoor Tennis Courts