September 2011 - Achilles International

More documents

Recommendations

Info

The end of the school year is an especially exciting time for our Achilles Kids school program. After a year of running, walking, or rolling 26.2 miles in all kinds of weather, the children who have completed 26.2 miles are rewarded with a brand new pair of NIKE sneakers! Below is a snapshot of three very special end-of-year ceremonies. Providence: On a bright and sunny day in May, a total of 140 students in 13 classes at the Meeting Street School in Providence, RI, capped off a year of Achilles Kids workouts with a celebratory race. The brilliant sunshine highlighted the beautiful happy, smiling faces on the children as they charged to the finish line. Adaptive Physical Education Teacher Mary Cooper was thrilled with the progress the students made over the course of the year and we are all very proud of their accomplishments! Brooklyn: The third annual P 369K Achilles Kids Spring Celebration was held on June 17th. More than 90 students proudly wore the brand new Nike sneakers they earned after walking up to 49.2 miles over the course of the school year! Each class displayed banners that they had made for the occasion, and their works of art were truly awesome. There was some poignancy to this incredibly joyful celebration however, as we bade a very fond and very sad farewell to Adaptive Physical Education Teacher Robert Basinger, who has made the program there truly magical. He will be greatly missed at Achilles, but we send our very best wishes to him as he begins medical school at Columbia in September! Achilles Kids "All-Stars!" Roanoke: Special Achilles Kids End of Year Fun Runs were held in Roanoke, Virginia at Fishburn Elementary School, Fallon Park Elementary School and William Fleming High School on July 27th & 28th. More than 70 Achilles Kids members ran circles around all of us in this “runapalooza” of group runs, timed runs and relay races. We want to thank Adaptive Physical Education teachers Rob Sawyer and Amari Saint for all the wonderful things they do to make the program in Roanoke so special. These were just a few of the many wonderful Achilles Kids end of year ceremonies that were held this year. We want to thank ALL the AMAZING, AWESOME, and DEDICATED Adaptive Physical Education teachers in our program for the countless hours of time, effort, love and devotion they put into making our program so successful each and every year. It is indeed a privilege to work with all of you! Achilles Kids Weekend Program has enjoyed a fun-filled season of sun and games! With sweltering temperatures and a long luxurious break from school, we took refuge in the cool air of the JCC to celebrate Parents Day and the 4th of July. We travelled Under the Sea, to the further reaches of space to Shoot for the Stars, and celebrated all things Summer. As always, our great volunteers – including at one workout Miss New York, Kaitlin Monte – kept kids laughing and learning. Thanks to the incredibly generous support of the NY Yankees, 40 members of the Achilles Kids family had the opportunity to watch the Yankees battle the Tampa Bay Rays. Parents and kids alike were thrilled by the incredible seats behind home plate. We can never thank the Yankees enough for this special experience. Clockwise from top center: Eli, Kael, and Jah'vid with their medals at the H&P finish line; Miss New York and Achilles Kid KE play duck duck goose; End of year ceremony for the Achilles Kids at MS 180. 8 Winter 2011
FREEDOM TEAM of Wounded Veterans Continued from page 3 Rio Marathon Rio de Janeiro, Brazil was the amazing half marathon destination for four Achilles Freedom Team members (in finishing order): Freddy de Los Santos, Luke Murphy, Alex Leonard and Orlando Gil. Thanks to the efforts of Charles Klotsche, executive director of our Globetrotter program, major support in Rio was provided by George Cohon and McDonald's Latin America, with additional support organized by UBS in Palm Beach for travel and visa expenses. McDonald's arranged for presentations to Andef, a major sports complex for people with special needs in Rio, and the Ronald McDonald House, where the team had the privilege of playing with children undergoing cancer treatments. Additionally, the delegation joined Retired FDNY Captain and devoted Achilles supporter Dan Daly in a visit to two high schools including one in the well-known "City of God." Reaching these vulnerable teenagers was quite an experience and we're grateful to the State Department for making it happen. Other highlights included Corcovado, Sugarloaf Mountain, awesome restaurants, samba with some locals and of course, the Brazilian bikinis. It was an international marathon trip that will be hard to beat. Special thanks to Robin Stringer who helped in every way imaginable and to our tour guide/translator Ana Maria who stopped at nothing to take care of the group. The Mission Continues Fellowship Program challenges post- 9/11 wounded veterans to continue service to their nation by serving their communities. Through a fellowship, a veteran may volunteer for 28 weeks with the Freedom Team, learning how to use qualities and skill-sets gained through their military service as a way to benefit not only their own lives, but the community around them. Veterans also receive resources for personal and professional growth, including a cost of living stipend. For more information, visit MissionContinues.org. Achilles volunteer Tim Leonard continues to organize local races for Freedom Team members. On July 30th Mike Minard and Evan Marcy competed in the Queens Half Marathon. Mike was the first handcrank finisher, in 1:02:51; Evan was right behind in 1:22:10. Congrats to both racers and a big Thank You to Tim, who does a spectacular job, handling all the necessary details so the vets can have a great race. The Blue Star Mothers of NJ held a mini H & P on Sunday, July 17. They raised more than $2,000 for the Achilles Freedom Team of Wounded Veterans. Enza Jacobowitz and her Team Support our Soldiers made this connection. Enza had unprecedented success with her fundraising campaign this year. Team S.O.S. raised more than $40,000 to honor her brother Louie Marciante, Jr. and other fallen soldiers. Over four years, Enza has raised more than $100,000 and in the process kept the memory of her beloved brother and many like him alive. Top to bottom: the Team in beautiful Rio; Tim Leonard with Achilles athletes Evan Marcy and Mike Minard at the Queens Half Marathon; Enza Jacobowitz of Team S.O.S and one of the many handcranks she has endowed. Achilles Heel 9
Page 1 and 2: the ACHILLES HEEL Fall 2011 Achille
Page 3 and 4: of Wounded Veterans cycle dedicatio
Page 5 and 6: WITH HOPE & POSSIBILITY! time racer
Page 7: er & Tri-Team News Open Division Re
Page 11 and 12: National & International Chapter Ne

September 2011 - Achilles International

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?