Pierre de Coubertin, the father of the modern Olympics, once said, “The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning, but taking part; the essential thing in life is not conquering, but fighting well.”
On Nov. 5, the city of Santa Maria and the Special Olympics of Northern Santa Barbara County sponsored the inaugural School Games. The event took place at Adam Basin Park, just west of Adam School, with an impressive turnout of 57 kids (kindergarten through eighth grade) from five different schools: Adam Elementary, Miller Elementary, Liberty Elementary, Kunst Junior High, and Fesler Junior High.
There was commotion at every end of the field, with all eyes fixed on the events in progress. School Games featured five events: the 25-yard dash, a softball throw, a soccer kick, a standing long jump, and of course, a neat-o obstacle course. The kids seemed to enjoy soccer the most—the only thing missing was Andrés Cantor’s signature call of “Gooooaaaallll!”
The event was spearheaded by Rudy Gutierrez, operations coordinator for the Northern Santa Barbara County Special Olympics, with help from Sports Coordinator Matthew Nartatez. Both men looked like Olympic athletes themselves, running from event to event, making sure everything went smoothly and getting glimpses of the athletes in action.
Gutierrez has been working for the Special Olympics for more than two years. The county’s Special Olympics program has two seasons: spring/summer (March through June) and fall/winter (August through December). The games for high school students will take place early next year in the spring/summer session.
School Games was created specially for kindergartners through eighth-graders as a way to get kids involved with the Special Olympics at a young age—the goal being to familiarize participants with the organization’s programs so they could continually participate.
“We want to show them the opportunities they have available,” Gutierrez said.
To get the project off the ground, Gutierrez and Nartatez got help from Kathy Fargen, program specialist for Special Education in the Santa Barbara School District. Gutierrez said Fargen was instrumental in the event’s creation. A lot of work went into the games, though the organizers weren’t the only ones breaking a sweat these past weeks. The athletes went all out, too.
As with any sport, practice makes perfect, and success comes only after hard work. For six weeks, the kids practiced the events in their respective classes with help from Nartatez. He’s the man responsible for the course layout and coaching.
He’s been working with the Special Olympics for the past 14 months. When the sports coordinator position became available, Nartatez picked up the ball and ran with it.
“The events, in general, are what make this job fun,” he said.
Various classes from Adam Elementary and K-Kid volunteers from the Santa Maria Kiwanis Club contributed to the event’s positive atmosphere. Every station was surrounded by a group of children cheering on the young athletes and offering high-fives after every round.
“One of our main goals is inclusion,” Nartatez said. “All kids enjoy the same things.”
You could see it in the young volunteers’ eyes: They weren’t cheering on kids with disabilities; they weren’t high-fiving kids with special needs. They were cheering on their peers and high-fiving fellow athletes.
Fargen gave a lot of credit to Adam Elementary Principal Laurie Graack, who not only provided use of school facilities but had the idea to include school children for cheering.
It was a great day for everyone involved but, of course, it was the athletes themselves who had the most fun.
Fesler student Cheyene Drum said she loved the Soccer Kick and competing with her friends. The same goes for her schoolmate, Rapheal Camarillo, even though he prefers to play goalie. Liberty Student Gracey Rios preferred the 25-yard dash. (Probably due to the fact that she won—the girl runs like the wind.)
The event concluded with awards and a closing ceremony.
Pierre de Coubertin could not have been more right.
Intern Jacob Lopez breaks a sweat while writing—but he writes really hard. Contact him at intern@santa mariasun.com.
This article appears in Nov 11-18, 2010.