UMass Special Olympics Winter Recreation Day gets kids active

For UMass Dartmouth students Olivia Ali and Samantah King, sports have always been a space for them to find community and grow. 

And on Sunday, Feb. 2, the two got to be a part of building that community. Ali and King, who are vice president and president of the Student Athletic Advisory Committee, respectively, hosted the second annual Winter Recreation Day in collaboration with the state’s Special Olympics organization. 

The event, held at the Tripp Athletic Center gym, featured a number of different activities, including knock-out basketball, volleyball, whiffleball, a balloon toss and bean bag tic-tac-toe.

Ali, who is a sophomore volleyball player, said, “It’s just a way for all the different athletes to get involved and kind of give back to the community.”

She added, “It shows good motor skills with the young athletes too.”

Ali began playing sports when she was in the first grade, so she said it’s always been a “huge” part of her life, helping her develop relationships and teaching her a number of lessons that she still uses to this day.

“I think it’s just super important to get active at a young age,” she said. 

The event saw a higher turnout this year, with 18 kids signed up to join the over 50 college athletes who volunteered to help out, according to King. 

“I feel like, right now, video games are super huge and sports are not having the value that they used to,” King said, adding that though being a student athlete can be hard at times — it’s always worth it.

In regard to the event, she said, “I think we’re just super excited to see how it goes this year and see the kids having a bunch of fun because last year it was just so nice how much they enjoyed it, especially the parents were so grateful to have this opportunity to bring their kids to cause there’s not much like this that goes on.”

Jennifer Castanhimha, of Mattapoisett, and Jessica Ramos, of New Bedford, both brought their sons, Jacob, 12, and Justin, 14, for the day of events for the first time this year. 

“It’s great,” Castanhimha said. “There’s so many volunteers — lots of activities to keep the kids engaged.”

She and Ramos agreed there’s a lot their kids can learn from these kinds of activities, including commitment, discipline, new skills and hot to get involved with their peers.

Ramos added, “It keeps my son active and allows him to interact with other children with disabilities.”

Castanhimha said she’d like to see more events hosted like it, adding there aren’t many similar events held in the area.

King said this event was just one of the many that contribute to the over 6,400 hours of community service completed by the school.

“As student athletes, we are always giving back and always trying to do something for the greater good, especially for little ones that we hope to see in our place someday,” she said.