Airdrie Special Olympics teamed up with Boston Pizza and the Law Enforcement Torch Run to hold a special encounter between local Special Olympians and patrons of the local restaurant franchise on June 14.
All together, 12 local Special Olympians and law enforcement representatives from the Torch Run teamed up with servers from Boston Pizza to take orders, interact with the public, and raise a bit of money to help pay for the local athletes’ travel expenses.
“Together with local law enforcement, we raised awareness of Special Olympics as well as the Torch Run,” confirmed Sue Farkas-Fillatre, media relations coordinator for Special Olympics Airdrie. “It was fantastic to see because this was our first (public) event since COVID; so getting our athletes out into the community and the community meeting our athletes.”
Farkas-Fillatre said having face-to-face encounters with members of the public helped the athletes break out of their shells a little over the four hours of the event.
“It helps them gain so much confidence,” she said. “Our athletes were out there out of their comfort zone, and talking to members of the community.”
It also, she added, helped community members see some local athletes with differential abilities working and contributing meaningfully in a familiar context. It started multiple conversations between community members and the athletes about the role the Special Olympics plays in their lives.
“It was a fantastic awareness that Special Olympics are here in Airdrie,” Farkas-Fillatre said. “We are growing. It’s great to see the community be so excited and be so involved, and talking to the athletes. There were smiles everywhere.”
About $600 was raised from the event, but it really wasn’t about the money at the end of the night. But rather, Farkas-Fillatre said, it’s about having local Special Olympians and community members encounter each other in a different way.
“It was, all in all, a fantastic evening,” she said. “I would just like to say thank you to Boston Pizza for allowing us to have this event at their location.”
For more information on Airdrie Special Olympics, email [email protected].
The Law Enforcement Torch Run is considered the largest public awareness and grassroots fundraising organization for Special Olympics globally, and has raised more than $72 million in Canada since its inception.
For more information on the Law Enforcement Torch Run, visit specialolympics.ca/ways-give/law-enforcement-torch-run
