On March 28 Henrico County Middle School Unified basketball athletes played an intense match, driven by a loud crowd of Wildcats and local middle school students. Fans gathered in the gymnasium at 10 a.m. with colorful posters and signs to cheer on the athletes. Special Olympics Virginia’s Unified Basketball brought students of all types together.
“Unified Basketball Teams consist of individuals with and without intellectual disabilities playing WITH each other, together on a team. Sometimes the athlete scores (the person with intellectual disabilities), sometimes the partner scores (the person without intellectual disabilities);
but everyone has fun and engages in a competitive game of basketball. Unified Sports does just that, it creates unity between all students,” Special Olympics Virginia’s Capital Region Director Pam Mines said.
Before the game began, Circle of Friends President, senior Paige Schaffranek, and a few students from the Deep Run All-Star basketball team led the athlete’s oath: “If I win, let me win, and if I can not win, let me be brave in the attempt.”
“It added community into the event by having students in the stands say the oath along with the [students from the Integrated Services program] and middle school teams. I think the words ‘If I win, let me win, and if I can not win, let me be brave in the attempt,’ are very powerful and are a good reminder that we are all a team and are trying our very best,” Schaffranek said.
The game was neck and neck, but ended with two-year defending champions, Fairfield Middle School, securing a victory.
Deep Run Principal Dr. Brian Fellows announced John Rolfe Middle School as the second place winner.
The winning team was congratulated by the Wildcats’ shouts and energy. Mines handed out medals to the athletes.
The excitement of the fans drove the all-star teams’ energy.
“I was feeling excited and happy because the people were there for me and to cheer for me and the rest of us,” junior Aydin Damirchi said.
The purpose of the game was to bring the wildcat community together and successfully unite students of all types.
“The goal was to have Unified programming as an overall culture at your high school.
Not something you just do one time a year, but something that’s constant. [The Deep Run community] demonstrates a Unified program with the creation of your Unified club called “Circle of Friends. Having all of the Unified Middle School League come to Deep Run High School and having the Championship Game here, showed the students that Unified is everywhere,” Mines said.
Wildcats and middle schoolers cheered and played together in an enjoyable game.
