Basketball is a sport which has been bringing people together for decades. Both critical wins and devastating losses bind a team together under common ground; regardless of any individual differences between teammates. With this in mind, it seems only natural that sports could act as a method for the integration of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). In partnership with Special Olympics Unified Sports, the Coronado High School and Coronado Middle School Best Buddies chapters collaborated to put on their first ever basketball game on Friday, May 18th. Lauren White, the Coronado Best Buddies founder and current high school chapter president, coordinated the event. The game included over 25 kids, with general education and IDD playing on both teams.
In attendance was Police Chief Jon Froomin who ended up subbing in for a couple of plays. He is an advocate for Special Olympics and it was amazing to have him support the event. In a conversation after the game, Kendall Chapko, the High School club treasurer, said, “It was a really awesome experience and I would definitely want to do it again. It was super cool to be able to see all of the buddies and peer buddies playing together.” This impactful experience is just one step towards Best Buddies’ mission to develop the skills necessary for people with IDD to get jobs and be able to support themselves. An event as seemingly simple as a basketball game has the power to ignite something much more powerful than the excitement over a made basket or the exhilaration of running down the court. It has the potential to foster an environment in which lives are changed.
