2026 Annual Potluck Supper and Awards Night

Please mark your calendar

Thursday April 16th   6PM 

OUR LADY OF GRACE PARISH HALL

784 Main St.

Colchester Village

Athletes, families, caregivers, coaches, volunteers and friends welcomed!

Call Laurette Cade, 802-879-6061 to RSVP

Hot and cold dishes, salads, rolls and dessert needed.

Awards, prizes, good food and fun!!!!!!!!!!!!

2026 Jeff Kutt Spirit Award Nominations

 

The Jeff Kutt Award was founded in 2002 to honor athletes who epitomize the spirit of the Special Olympics. The recipient of this award has exemplified his or her commitment to the team, strives for excellence, demonstrates teamwork on and off the field, and has shown courage in their attempt to succeed.

Those worthy of this award will exhibit the following behaviors/qualities:

• Helpful to teammates
• Encouraging to teammates, especially when others are feeling down.
• Exhibits great sportsmanship, win or lose.
• Shows enthusiasm, win or lose.
• Is attentive and focused both during practice and events.

Nomination Process

1. Identify the athlete you would like to nominate with their full name and sport(s) they participate in.
2. Provide a brief description of the athlete, including how they relate to the qualities listed above.
3. Send your nominations in email form to James Bove at jbovevt@comcast.net by noon, Monday April 6th.

Once nominations have been received, we will compile them into a master document and send it to the award committee, comprised of the Chittenden Program management committee. The recipient of the award will be announced at the spring Annual Potluck Supper and Awards Night on Thursday April 16th.

The Jeff Kutt Award has honored the following athletes:

2025 Erin Watson

2024 Kate Bove

2023 Joshua Beaupre

2022 Mariah Trayah

2021 COVID-19

2020 Andrew Robertson

2019 Becky Brown

2018 Adam Brooks

2017 Danielle Viau

2016 Sarah Laclair

2015 Leah Boardman

2014 Joshua Holsopple 

2013 Carrie Fox

2012 Malai Holland

2011 Shanan Duba

2010 Daniel Goodrow

2009 Camille Cardinal

2008 Scott Johnston

2007 Robin Shockey

2006 Wayne Ashline

2005 Dawn Daggett

2004 Randy Turner

2003 Peter Tarte

2002 Larry Young

2026 Chittenden Bocce Practice

We are pleased to announce that Bocce practice begins Tuesday, April 14th, 5:30 PM to 6:30 PM at the Willey Family Farm in back of the Fairgrounds in Essex Junction. Take the St. James Place entrance to the fairgrounds from route 2A. Practices will be every Tuesday through June 2nd. Note that this is a change from prior years!

Special Olympics Vermont Summer Games will be June 5th and 6th at Saint Michael's College. 

Please contact Dave Bogdan (dbogdansr@gmail.com or 802-865-3840) to preregister so that we can have your medical at practice.

 

 

2026 Special Olympics Vermont Winter Games

The 2026 Special Olympics Vermont Winter Games will be held on Monday March 9th and Tuesday March 10th at the Hermitage Club in Wilmington Vermont. Our registered athletes coaches and support people will be staying overnight at the Mount Snow Grand Resort in Dover Vermont, about 10 minutes away. 

We plan on meeting at the Special Olympics Vermont office at 6:00 AM Monday 3/9/26 and carpooling down to the Hermitage Club. Although all of us will leave Monday morning at the same time, Cross Country Ski and Snowshoe athletes will be done after lunch on Tuesday and may return then, while the Alpine Ski and Snowboard athletes will have Tuesday afternoon competition and awards and will return later in the day. We will keep our carpool groups separate so we all get back at the correct time.

Below is the schedule and key information from Special Olympics Vermont:

Tentative Schedule

Monday
6:00 AM     Arrive at SOVT Office for carpool
9:00 AM     Delegation Check-in at The Hermitage Club
10:00 AM   Opening Ceremonies
11:00 AM     Grab and Go Lunch
12:00 PM     Coaches meeting
12:30 PM    Competition begins
4:00 PM     Hotel Check-in
6:00 PM     Dinner
7:00 PM    Dance
8:30 PM     Back to Hotel
Tuesday
7:30 AM     Breakfast
9:00 AM    Alpine Competition / Cross Country Ski and Snowshoe awards
12:00 PM    Lunch (Cross Country Ski and Snowshoe may depart after lunch)
1:00 PM     Alpine Competition
3:00 PM     Alpine Awards
5:00 PM     Depart
8:00 PM     Estimated Alpine arrival at SOVT



Dance Theme: Sunglasses at Night! 
Rock your favorite pair of sunglasses, hit the floor with your friends, and get ready for a night filled with high-energy music, big smiles, and memories that shine long after the lights go down and competitions end!

Ski and Snowboard Course Updates:
View the trail map here
🟩 The novice course will remain on the Blue-Sky trail

🟦 The intermediate course will now be divided into an Intermediate Low  (Pitchfork) course and an Intermediate High (Haymaker) course. 

🟥 The advanced course will remain on Rocker as it was in the past two years.

Snowshoe and Cross-Country Skiing Venue Update:
The snowshoe venue will take place right at the base of the upper mountain where the main lift and lodge is which means that there will be no need for shuttles on-property and folks will not have to trek out a long way to get to the venue. Cross Country Skiing will take place near the lodge, as well.


Meals:
Registered delegates will receive access to the following meals:
Monday:
Lunch: TBD. Ideally pre-packed and bundled by delegation
Dinner: (same menu as last year) plain chicken, BBQ chicken, mashed potatoes, ziti with tomato sauce, roasted vegetables, salad bar, brownie station

Tuesday:
Breakfast buffet
Lunch - all delegates will receive a drink and a choice of the following:
Burger and fries
Chicken fingers and fries
Mac and cheese
2 slices of pizza

Spectator/family member/non-registered delegates may purchase meals from SOVT in advance or on site. We will release a payment page as soon as it’s available.
Breakfast (Tuesday only): $10pp    
Lunch: $15pp
Dinner (Monday only): $20pp

2026 Chittenden Basketball Practice

We are pleased to announce our basketball practice season for all athletes, starting Saturday afternoon March 21st at the Essex High School Gym from 3:00 to 4:30 PM.
 
Schedule:
03/21/26 Essex High School
03/28/26 No Practice 
04/04/26 Essex High School
04/11/26 Essex High School
04/18/26 Essex High School
04/25/26 Essex High School
05/02/26 Essex High School
05/09/26 Essex High School
05/16/26 Essex High School
05/23/26 Essex High School
05/30/26 Essex High School
06/05/26 Saint Michael's Summer Games Opening ceremonies, dinner, dance
06/06/26 Saint Michael's Summer Games

Please sign up for Basketball by contacting me (dbogdansr@gmail.com or 802-865-3840) to register so that we can have your medical at practice. When you register with me, I will check your medical status. 

I will also create a basketball email group for communications. If you have anyone you want in that email group, let me know. Communications will come from the email:  basketball@sovtchittenden.groups.io 

Thanks, Dave

2025 Regional Floorball Competition 12/13/2025

Our 2025 Regional Floorball Competition will be this Saturday, 12/13/25 at the Chittenden home court, the Rick Marcotte Central School, South Burlington. We are asking athletes to arrive by 8:30 AM. The competition will start at 9:00 and we have to be out of the building by 1:00 PM. The competition will include two Chittenden teams and two Franklin teams. We will have pizza and awards after the competition. I'm looking forward to the competition!

2025 Special Olympics Vermont Swimming Competition 12/07/2025

 

Hi all, here is the latest information about the 2025 Special Olympics Vermont Swimming Competition.

Information from Special Olympics Vermont:

Event Guide Link: Click here for event guide 

Heat Sheet Link: Click here for heat sheet link

Heat Sheets and Scratches:

Please keep in mind that the heat sheets might change based on how many scratches we have day-of.  Athletes that have not checked in with their coaches by 11:00am will be scratched from the competition. 

You will notice that the heat sheets have green and light blue headers that alternate between each heat. If there are two green headers or two light blue headers in a row, that means that they are going to be in the pool racing at the same time. This will also be reflected in the lane numbers. 

Healthy Athletes Screening: Healthy Hearing

Time: 9:00 AM – 11:30 AM

Healthy Hearing Athlete Sign-Up: 2025 State Swim Competition- Healthy Hearing Sign-Up

• Note: Not required but encouraged

Swimming Earmold/plug Video: Healthy Athlete Healthy Hearing Demo

• Here is a video of what to expect for athletes who want to get custom made swimming earmolds/plugs made

Seating In and Out of the Pool:

Delegations will have assigned seating on the pool deck to make staging athletes run more smoothly. 

Additionally, we will have designated areas for delegations to gather in the hallway adjacent to the Ross Gym. 

Starter Prompt:

The starter prompt for swimmers will be:

3, 2, 1, Go!

There will be a visual queue, a flag, to help athletes who may have hearing limitations. 

Lunch:

Lunch will be available for pick-up at 10:45am from the snack shack. There is cold storage available so if you want to grab your lunch later, then that is also fine. Jersey Mikes sandwiches will also have pre-packed fruits and snacks for athletes. 

Only HODs and coaches can pick up lunches.

Team Vermont for USA Games will also be hosting a bake sale that will be available for spectators and registered delegates if they want to grab something to eat or drink. 

Awards:

Awards will be taking place in the front entrance lobby once again. We will be providing around 20 benches for seating, ~ 40-50 seats, however if someone from your delegation, or a spectator, requires seating, please make sure they know to bring their own chair.

Tips and reminders from coach Jennifer:

• Athletes need to arrive and check in with one of us BEFORE 11:00.  If they are not there by 11:00 they are getting scratched.  If folks know they are not going to make it to the meet due to illness or family change of plans please notify us as soon as they know.
• There will be lunches for athletes, and a bake sale for spectators.  Family members may want to bring some snacks for themselves.
• The pool deck is for athletes and coaches ONLY - family members are asked to stay in the stands and not come down on the pool deck.
• Athletes should bring a water bottle and two towels, one to have on the pool deck and one to keep dry in the locker for the end of the competition.
• There will be limited seating for awards, families may want to bring collapsible chairs.

Reminders:

• No running anywhere in the facility

• There is no food allowed on the pool deck! (signs will be posted)

• Please have everyone vacate the swim area with belongings upon completion of the competition (the pool will be closed right after)!

• Clean up after yourselves, let’s leave SMC cleaner than we found it!

• Please keep in mind that you are representing Special Olympics Vermont at these events so please make sure to treat all Saint Michael's College staff with respect (they are all volunteering their weekend for us)

• If any issues arise, please find a SOVT Staff member

Thanks, Dave

David C. Bogdan

Chittenden Program Coordinator

Special Olympics Vermont