|
 On Saturday, February 23, the snowstorm ended and the sun came out to shine down on a gym filled with excitement and anticipation as 180 students and faculty volunteers, 60 athletes and 80 spectators gathered for the 27th Annual Junior Special Olympics hosted by The Masters School. This annual fun fest is a chance for developmentally disabled young children from the Hudson Valley region to break in their sneakers in preparation for the real Special Olympics, a worldwide program of athletic competition.
 This year’s games began with a march of athletes ranging in age from three to eight, followed by a torch-lighting ceremony, of course! Then the competition began. Among the most popular “sports” were the obstacle course, the parachute, bowling, and air castle, but the young Olympians also enjoyed bean bag tossing and shooting baskets.
The afternoon of activities, games, and entertainment included music provided by a DJ and students dressed up as Cookie Monster, Tigger, Pooh, and assorted strange-looking clowns, which added to the fun spirit of the event that was planned and produced by Masters School students under the guidance of Amy Atlee, director of community service.
Atlee has nothing but praise for the efforts of the students, particularly the boarding community that pitched in to help set up the gym on Friday  evening during the snowstorm. “All of the students did an amazing job that was certainly appreciated by the parents of the athletes, who kept telling me how wonderful and incredible are students are,” she commented. “I could not agree with them more!”
|
