CHARLOTTE, N.C. — This week is the time hundreds of local Special Olympic athletes have looked forward to all year.
The Special Olympics Athletic Retreat, known as Camp SOAR, is held at the Levine Jewish Community Center on Providence Road in south Charlotte. This is the twenty-third year of an event that brings together over 300 campers and 500 volunteers.
Camp SOAR is an exciting week that encourages current Special Olympics athletes to try new sports and recruit new athletes to participate in Special Olympics. With a combination of outdoor and indoor activities, the athletes have a great experience to kick off their summer. Included on the daily schedule are chair aerobics, fitness, bocce, dance, arts and crafts, basketball, and new this year for the first time: pickleball.
Bob Bowler, the founder of Camp SOAR, told WCNC Charlotte's Larry Sprinkle that while other organizations offer summer camps with limited availability for campers with intellectual disabilities, Camp SOAR is free to all participants thanks to a group of generous sponsors.
Camp SOAR provides sports training and enrichment activities that keep athletes interested in physical fitness outside their regular sports training and competition. Camp SOAR also provides necessary experiences of acceptance.
All of the SOAR campers benefit from three days of physical activity, exposure to new sports, and the fun and fellowship of traditional day camp activities. Participants also enjoy a talent show and access to a computer.
Campers aged 26 years of age and older attend Monday and Tuesday, and campers between the ages of 12 and 25 attend Wednesday and Thursday. All campers return Friday for a big awards program and party.
Contact Larry Sprinkle at lsprinkle@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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