San Antonio – Janet Holliday began her love affair with Special Olympics Texas (SOTX) as a “hugger,” and now she’s taking on a new role for SOTX’s 2019 Summer Games May 2 through 5 at unique Morgan’s Wonderland theme park as a “reconnector.”
“When I was a student at The University of Texas in 1970, Special Olympics was in its infancy, and I was recruited to stand at the finish line and give hugs to Special Olympics athletes when they finished races,” said Holliday, president and CEO of the CE Group events management, events marketing and destination management company in San Antonio. “I became more and more involved in the organization and ultimately chaired the state board of directors for many years.”
Holliday cheered the announcement last fall that SOTX’s 50th Summer Games will be coming to San Antonio – Inclusion City USA – for the first time, so she immediately started to reconnect with volunteers who became good friends when SOTX established an office in San Antonio three decades ago. They include Bert Pfiester, Lupita Corbell, Debbie Morrill, Chuck Hendrix and Roy Terracina, who’ve all been recruited to join hundreds of other volunteers in staging the 2019 games.
Individuals interested in volunteering for duties in and around ultra-accessible™ Morgan’s Wonderland – headquarters for the 2019 Summer Games and the world’s first theme park designed with special-needs individuals in mind – can register at http://www.SOTX.org/competitions/summergames/volunteer. The Gordon Hartman Family Foundation is presenting sponsor for the event that’s expected to attract as many as 10,000 athletes, coaches, volunteers, family members and spectators.
After moving to Houston in the mid-1970s, Holliday landed a job with Harris County MHMR administering $2 million on programs for those with mental disabilities. It was then that she became a close associate of Eunice Kennedy Shriver, whose sister with special needs Rosemary was the inspiration for founding Camp Shriver and ultimately Special Olympics in 1968. Shriver played “a huge part” in Holliday’s life and involved her more and more in Special Olympics at the state and national levels.
Holliday’s storehouse of memories includes the Law Enforcement “Flame of Hope” Torch Run that originated in Wichita, Kan., in 1981. She recalls that a unit of the Bexar County Sheriff’s Department got involved, helping convey the torch to Special Olympics opening ceremonies on horseback.
After relocating to San Antonio in 1985 to start her successful business, Holliday continued to pursue her other passion – Special Olympics. There was no Special Olympics office in the city at that time, however she and other volunteers ran “one of the most vibrant programs in the state that took people with disabilities and showed off their abilities, much to the shock and delight of spectators.”
Holliday has filled roles as hugger and connector, and at this year’s Summer Games, she’ll take on an additional role as “celebrator,” helping coordinate the opening and closing ceremonies. “These Special Olympics competitions are such joyful occasions,” she said, “They bring everyone together so the athletes can teach us valuable life lessons and remind us that we’re getting much more out of volunteering than we’re putting in.”
