“Let me win and if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.” –   Special Olympics Motto

This year the P &F hosted another incredible Mini-Olympics day. We were lucky enough to spend the day with some amazing Special Olympics athletes, all boys had a great day enjoying the activities and supporting a worthwhile cause. The Year 6 boys developed and oversaw the sporting stations. They were focused, engaged and showed excellent leadership in the service of the other boys. It was also incredible that our boys managed to raise over $12,500 dollars for the Special Olympics organisation, this money will be used to fund sport and community programs for people with intellectual disabilities.

I spoke with the boys at the Mini-Olympics assembly about the Special Olympics Motto. This motto applies to us all. It means that we need to find the courage to give it all we’ve got.

“Giving it all you’ve got,” may mean winning but just as importantly it may mean being brave and trying something new for the first time.  If you are a kindergarten boy, it may mean being brave whilst learning to swim across a pool. For other boys it may mean putting in your best effort in music, in sport, in helping others. In anything we do, we need to do our best and be brave and courageous in our efforts.

The Special Olympics movement is for people with intellectual challenges who like many of us, love playing sport, love being part of a team and love representing and cheering for our team. They share the same interests as many of our boys and families, in this way, sport is a great connector of people.

Often people with intellectual disabilities need to be brave to meet the daily challenges that they face. Our Year 5 and 6 boys see this firsthand as they help out at Cromehurst School. They see how hard it can be for some boys and girls in our community to learn and do the basic things we take for granted. The Mini-Olympics day helps our boys understand that we are all privileged and that we not only need to appreciate our fortunate position but show gratitude and help others who are not so fortunate.

This is the fourth year we have held the Mini-Olympics. It is a fantastic event hosted by the P & F and organised by Kate Hooke and Colleen Bromwich. Kate and Colleen worked incredibly hard to make the day such fun and so successful for everyone involved. We are very grateful for their efforts.

Next year, the Special Olympics want to bring out one of their representative basketball teams and have a mixed game with the senior boys. They also want to film the day and the work done by the school on behalf of the Special Olympics organisation as an example that other schools may like to follow.

(Excerpt from 2018 Term 2 Week 8 Head of Lindfield Message to Parents)