Bowling alley to host Special Olympics opening ceremony
LIMERICK >> The Olympic torch may have already been extinguished in Rio but the spirit of the games will live on in our area every weekend this fall.
About 70 athletes ranging in age from 8 to over 60 years old from across the region will participate in the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics bowling league at Limerick Bowl Sept. 10. Athletes will arrive at 9:45 a.m. and the ceremony begins at 10:30 a.m.
Among those participating in the ceremony include members of the Limerick Police Department, who will carry a lit torch into the bowling alley with the athletes; four athletes, who will carry a banner and the Special Olympics flag; and the Spring-Ford Area School District Color Guard and Spring-Ford student singers, who will perform the National Anthem. This year 15 certified volunteers will also be on hand to help out.
Athletes will line up outside, along the side of the building and will parade in where they will be introduced. After the National Anthem, athletes will recite the official Special Olympics pledge.
The ceremony kicks off the fourth season of the 12week bowling league, which will run every Saturday at 11 a.m. through Nov. 26, followed by a county-wide tournament Dec. 4. The league features bowlers with all types of disabilities. From wheelchairs, to walkers, amputees, to athletes with Down syndrome, the league runs the gamut, according to Tina Cappiello, site coordinator for Special Olympics bowling at Limerick Bowl. The top athletes will compete for a chance to go the sectional tournament and then possibly the state competition. The league started after a league at the Facenda Whitaker Lanes in East Norriton saw great success.
“These are true athletes,” she said. “These athletes give 110 percent. They don’t care about the score. They teach you about enjoying things.”
Some athletes will jump for joy even after they bowl a gutter ball, she said.
“Athletes bowl a 200, 160, 10, 30 it’s just learning experience, that’s why we have younger coaches,” she said. “Everyone is the same. No one should be treated any differently. Puts a lot of things into perspective.”
There are no words that can express the satisfaction she feels seeing athletes achieve as they’re learning and always smiling, she said.
“We’re here to have fun,” she said. “It’s not a competition. Everyone receives something at end of the competition. No one is left out; no one is turned away. It’s an amazing feeling.”
To participate or volunteer in the Special Olympics bowling league at Limerick Bowl, contact manager Ron Nichols at 610-495-7143 or call Cappiello at 484-7440030.