The Special Olympics began as a summer day camp for children and adults in June of 1962 at the home of Eunice Kennedy Shriver in Maryland. Participants were encouraged to explore their capabilities by participating in various sports and physical activies.

The first International Special Olympics Summer Games were held in Chicago, Illinois with 1,000 participants from 26 U.S. states and Canada. Track and field and swimming were the main events.

The Special Olympics celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2008 with more than 3 million athletes from more than 180 countries around the world. The fascinating history of the Special Olympics can be viewed by clicking here: www.specialolympics.org.

The Special Olympic Athlete Oath: “Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.”

The Pike County School System celebrates its own Special Olympics every year. The fourth annual Special Olympics began on May 4, 2011 with Courtney Weldon and Ike Holmes running the Olympic torch from the High School to the track with a police escort. They carried the torch in front of the Primary School where they were greeted with cheers from students and teachers who came out to celebrate the event. Then they ran onto to the field where the athletes were proudly standing behind their banners for the opening ceremony.

The parade of athletes and the athletes' enthusiam was a wonderful sight to see. Each athlete was named as the crowd cheered for them. The Elementary School did something special for Coach Brandon Brown. They asked to be called Brandon's Warriors and wore green bands in his honor as well as walking to the song, "You Got a Friend In Me".

The ceremony continued with the Star Spangled Banner and a hearty, "Let the games begin!!"

[Note from the Editor: If you have pictures from this event that you would like to have included on this page, please email them to Pike County Times at editor@pikecountytimes.com and I will include them with credit to you for sending them.]