More Alike Than Different


Book Description

In this inspiring memoir, David Egan tells his own story, giving us a window into a life spent pushing boundaries. With a family undaunted by his diagnosis of Down syndrome, Egan learned early to speak up for himself. He has since become a powerful advocate for all people with disabilities. His optimistic perspective rejected the limits of stereotypes and the expectations of others. He shares how the support of loving family and friends led him to overcome challenges and blaze new trails. It started with swimming and baseball, when he earned places on his neighborhood teams, competing fiercely and as a fully accepted teammate. He writes firsthand of the empowering feeling of being fully included in elementary school and at work as an adult. Egan has earned positions at prestigious companies and a distinguished fellowship on Capitol Hill. He sits on the boards of influential advocacy organizations. He has addressed audiences worldwide and has played a powerful global advocacy role with Special Olympics. He allowed himself to dream big, and he encourages everyone to do the same. His lesson to all of us is to focus on our shared humanity despite our differences--and our diagnoses. This hopeful memoir will encourage everyone to make the most of their lives.




Special Olympics


Book Description

Ideal for today's young investigative reader, each A True Book includes lively sidebars, a glossary and index, plus a comprehensive "To Find Out More" section listing books, organizations, and Internet sites. A staple of library collections since the 1950s, the new A True Book series is the definitive nonfiction series for elementary school readers.




Special Olympics


Book Description

This book brings together academic work on Special Olympics and specifically on the social inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities in various sport contexts and other areas of life, by ways of both empirical research and theoretically informed papers. Inclusion in sport is a topic that is mostly explored in connection with the participation of people with disabilities in general. In public debates on inclusion and sport in the global society, participation is predominantly discussed in a normative way, e.g., in connection with the campaign The Revolution is Inclusion by Special Olympics, describing it as an “all-out effort to end discrimination against people with intellectual disabilities”. With this international collection, the authors seek to contribute to an interdisciplinary understanding of Special Olympics in Context of Inclusion Debates and establish a foundation for future scholarship. The chapters in this book can contribute to a new research agenda on Special Olympics, particularly participatory approaches. The chapters in this book were originally published in Sport in Society.




The Call to Unite


Book Description

From some of our most prominent spiritual and religious leaders, poets and thinkers, singers and writers, a book of wisdom to light our way in dark times. AN OPEN FIELD PUBLICATION FROM MARIA SHRIVER At the start of 2020, in what felt already like an age of disorder, our world faced one of the gravest global challenges in a century. Covid-19 raced around the earth, and chaos erupted. Yet in the midst of this crisis, billions of human beings responded with love. Across the globe, people sought to connect, whether in person from a socially distant six feet or via a screen from 10,000 miles away. In that moment, Tim Shriver saw an opportunity for those hungry for community to answer a call to heal, a call to hope, a call to unite. He asked monks and nuns, artists and activists, nurses and doctors, ex-presidents and ex-cons to come together to share messages of inspiration, transformation, and love. This book captures the spirit of that 24-hour event. Featuring stories and insights from Bishop TD Jakes, Elizabeth Gilbert, Van Jones, Amy Grant, Dr. Rheeda Walker, Pastor Rick Warren, Rev. Jacqui Lewis, Jewel, Deepak Chopra and many others, The Call to Unite offers readers a book of wisdom to turn to in hard times - filled with prayers, poems, spiritual insights and lessons to live by that will stand the test of time. Those seeking affirmation, solace, and inspiration need only look inside for guidance in finding the light in any crisis. Only in embracing each other can we amplify the love that creates our global community. Only in coming together can we be our happiest, and our best.




Fully Alive


Book Description

"A memoir and history of the Special Olympics and a meditation on what one can learn about how to live from people with intellectual disabilities, by the chairman of the Special Olympics"--




Hearts and Souls of Special Olympics


Book Description

This book includes surveys from individuals who are involved with Special Olympics such as: coaches, employees, athletes and volunteers, and parents. It also gives you a better understanding of Special Olympics in Montana.




Special Olympics


Book Description

Using the new C3 Framework for Social Studies Standards, Special Olympics in the Global Citizens: Sports series explores the topic through the lenses of History, Geography, Civics, and Economics. As they read, students will develop questions about the text, and use evidence from a variety of sources in order to form conclusions. Data-focused backmatter is included, as well as a table of contents, author biography, sidebars, bibliography, glossary, and index.




Be Brave in the Attempt


Book Description

Special Olympics Texas started small in 1969. By its 50th anniversary year, more than 58,000 athletes enjoyed the benefits of SOTX sports. The look on their faces during competition is a window to happiness and self-worth. The organization itself describes its mission as providing "year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy, and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills, and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes, and the community." The purpose of this volume is not only to chronicle some uniquely compelling stories of Special Olympics Texas, but to raise important funds for the participating athletes, as well. This beautiful book will enable future Special Olympics Texas athletes and their families to attend state meets. The result can change a life forever through the enduring gift of self-confidence. As one SOTX parent put it: "If everyone could share the outlook of these athletes, we'd live in a very happy world."




An Oral History of the Special Olympics in China Volume 2


Book Description

This open access book contains the oral histories that were inspired by the work of the Special Olympics in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of its founding. The foreword and prefatory materials provide an overview of the Special Olympics and its growth in the Peoples Republic of China. The sections that follow record interview transcripts of individuals with intellectual disabilities living in Shanghai. In addition to chronicling the involvement of these individuals and their families in the Special Olympics movement, the interview transcripts also capture their daily lives and how they have navigated school and work.




Channel Kindness: Stories of Kindness and Community


Book Description

A New York Times Bestseller For Lady Gaga, kindness is the driving force behind everything she says and does. The quiet power of kindness can change the way we view one another, our communities, and even ourselves. She embodies this mission, and through her work, brings more kindness into our world every single day. Lady Gaga has always believed in the importance of being yourself, being kind to yourself, and being kind to others, no matter who they are or where they come from. With that sentiment in mind, she and her mother, Cynthia Germanotta, founded Born This Way Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to making the world a kinder and braver place. Through the years, they've collected stories of kindness, bravery and resilience from young people all over the world, proving that kindness truly is the universal language. And now, we invite you to read these stories and follow along as each and every young author finds their voice just as Lady Gaga has found hers. Within these pages, you’ll meet young changemakers who found their inner strength, who prevailed in the face of bullies, who started their own social movements, who decided to break through the mental health stigma and share how they felt, who created safe spaces for LGBTQ+ youth, and who have embraced kindness with every fiber of their being by helping others without the expectation of anything in return. In one story, you’ll read about a young person with an autoimmune disease, who after being bullied at school, learned how to practice self-love and started an organization with the mission of educating others about the importance of self-love, too; and in another story, you’ll meet a young person who decided to start a movement to help eliminate the stigma surrounding mental health and encouraged others to talk about their feelings openly and honestly, a reminder that kindness and mental wellness go hand in hand. Not only were we moved by these individual acts of kindness, but we were also touched by the many stories of organizations, neighborhoods, and entire communities that fully dedicated themselves to helping those in need and found new, innovative ways to make our world a kinder and braver place. Individually and collectively, these stories prove that kindness not only saves lives but builds community. Kindness is inclusion, it is pride, it is empathy, it is compassion, it is self-respect and it is the guiding light to love. Kindness is always transformational, and its never-ending ripples result in even more kind acts that can change our lives, our communities, and our world.