Friday, May 31, 2013

A Little About the Hopewell Indians

   The Hopewell Indians of Coshocton County is the Coshocton County Developmental Board of Disabilites. This is a Special Olympics program for the disabled of our county to get the opportunity to participate in sports such as Basketball, Cheerleading, Softball, and Bowling. The county board also hosts an annual Special Olympics Track and Field Day for the individuals to take part in as well. The sports programs are open to any individual of any age, ranging from having an IEP in school or to being physically disabled. No one is discreminated against and no one is turned away from participating in these programs. The sports teams of Coshocton travel to surrounding counties, where they play other developmentally disabled teams. For instance, the Hopewell Indians play counties including, but not limited to: Guernsey, Muskingum, Bellmont, Tuscarawas and Delaware.
   Each sports team goes through practices and a schedule of games, just as a High School sports team would. The bowling team here in Coshocton normally meets every Sunday to practice bowl three games, and they compete in tournaments usually three times throughout their season. The Basketball team practices two times a week for the season, which generally lasts from November to February, with tournaments in March. During the regular game season, they play on average of two games per week. The tournaments are set up just like High School, with Hopewell being in Division II. The tournaments are single elimination and are held in places like Columbus, depending on the team's division. This past March, the Hopewell Indians played their tournament games in Columbus against other Division II teams.
   My first experience of getting to go and watch a Hopewell event, is when I went to watch the basketball team, which is pictured above. I went to a game during the 2011-2012 season, after I began dating their head coach. That year the team consisted of about twenty players and this past year they had about 40 players. I'm not going to lie, at first I thought the games would be slow paced and boring. But to my surprise, they were the most entertaining sports games I have ever been to. Those kids amazed me that night. I would much rather go watch a Special Olympics sports game than a regular High School athletic event. Those players are always smiling and laughing, they don't care if they are winning or losing, and they do not care if they make a basket or miss it. They just thrive on the thrill of being out in the public eye and having people watch and cheer them on. If you ever get a chance to go watch an athletic event of the developmentally disabled, I totally recommend that you do it! I can promise you that it will be worth your while!

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