Special Olympics

ARC Community Services is the local program in the North Central area for Special Olympic sports. The minimum age to train is 6 years old, but an athlete cannot compete until the age of 8 years old. Special Olympics offers training programs for a wide variety of sports including swimming, track and field, traditional and unified basketball, cross country skiing, unified softball, and unified soccer.

Special Olympic Volleyball Registration 2008

All registrations, accompanied by payment or confirmed payment arrangements worked out with ARC, must be received at ARC Community Services by March 14, 2008.  Open slots are limited, and priority will be given to last year’s athletes only until the March 14th deadline. After that date the slots will be assigned on a first-come first-served basis to individuals who have completed all their paperwork and paid all their fees until the team rosters are full. Returning and prospective new Unified Partners or coaches should please call Art or Jean Merriam at 978-537-0137 by March 14th to let them know that they are interested in participating this season. 

All special athletes (new & returning) must have a current medical on file and all Unified Partners must have a current DSV (Class A Volunteer) form on file PRIOR to the first practice.  All Special Olympics forms are valid for 3 years from the date of the physical or the individual’s signature, whichever is the earlier date. 

Since it is a short sports season, practices are usually held in Fitchburg on both Sunday evenings and a weekday evening, either Tuesday or Thursday, from 6:00 to 7:30 beginning the last full week in April. The season ends the third full weekend of June with the weekend-long SOMA Summer State Games in Boston.  Usually there is no volleyball on Memorial Day Weekend, but if enough people want to have practice, it will be optional and held on the holiday Monday evening. An Assessment is tentatively scheduled for May 19th or 20th and the State Games are planned for June 13th – 15th (all weekends), but these dates could change. Attendance at almost all the practices or an excused absence AND participation in the Assessment and State Games is expected of all team members so please check your schedule/availability for these dates prior to registering. Any individual questions or problems, please call Art or Jean Merriam 978-537-0137.

Please fill out the form (PDF format; if you don't have the Adobe PDF reader, get it here) and mail by March 14 to:

** Not sure whether or not you are a member? Call Rose Wuoti, 978-343-6662. Membership form is attached.

*** Athletes will not be excluded from sports based on an inability to pay the participation fee. Financial Aid forms are available by contacting Eileen Ganong at 978-343-6662.  All requests will be kept confidential.

Special Olympics Softball Registration 2008

***REMINDER: All athletes, including those who played last year, who wish to play softball this year, must submit this completed registration form and payment by May 25th. Last year’s teams were filled so open slots are limited. Priority will be given to last year’s team members until the May 25th deadline. After that, slots will be considered open and filled with new registrations.

The participation fee for this sport is as follows:
ARC Member: $44.00**
Non-Member:  $53.00

**If you are not sure whether or not you are a member, please call Rose Wuoti at 978-343-6662. A membership application is available in this mailing for your convenience.

Return completed form and payment by May 25 to Ruth Nicholson, ARC Community Services, 564 Main St., Fitchburg, MA  01420

Softball Notice

It is with regret that I need to let you know that Rick Clouthier has decided to retire as field coach of Ma’s Giants softball team. With that decision, Renee has resigned as head coach and the team has decided to retire the team and its name. Rick has dedicated many years to Special Olympics; the ARC and Special Olympic softball will miss him and Ma’s Giants, but we certainly understand and respect his decision. We will make every effort to accommodate any partner or special athlete that wants to continue playing by fitting them onto another team.

To accomplish that, ARC will start a new softball team this summer, if the demand from new and returning players and partners is there and it looks like there will be. Jean and Art Merriam have offered to move over and coach the new team. That would leave the Blue Jays without a coach, but Eric Johnson has offered to remain in his role of “field coach” while his wife Sara would assume the role of head coach. Leo Levesque and Roberta Tassone would continue as coaches of the Cardinals and Twins.  We thank them all...

Making this all work smoothly may well mean swapping some partners and/or athletes among the teams that will exist this year; but as we find who does want to return from Ma’s Giants as well as other teams and to see who registers as new athletes and partners, this will give us the opportunity to review the composition of teams and ensure that placements make the most sense for all concerned.

For this reason, we want to connect with all the partners and athletes from last year’s rosters to find out whether or not they plan to return to Special O softball this season. If you played last year and are planning on returning, please know that there may be some changes to some team’s rosters and you may find yourself assigned to a different team. If this presents a major problem for you OR if you are looking for a change, please get back to one of us ASAP!!  We will do our best to minimize disruptions but our first concern is for the safety and well being of all concerned.

Dolphins Swim Team (ages 8 to 30) Registration 2008

Practices begin in January and are typically held on Saturday afternoons.

The participation fee for this sport is as follows:
ARC Member: $40.00**
Non-Member:  $52.00

** If you are not sure whether or not you are a member, please call Rose Wuoti at 978-343-6662.  A membership application is available in this mailing for your convenience.

Please fill out the form (PDF format; if you don't have the Adobe PDF reader, get it here)and mail it by January 21, 2008.

Ruth Nicholson, ARC Community Services, 564 Main Street, Fitchburg, MA 01420

*Athletes will not be excluded from sports based on an inability to pay the participation fee.  Financial Aid forms are available by contacting Eileen Ganong at 978-343-6662.  All requests will be kept confidential.

Mini Golf League
Thursdays, July 10 through August 28
6:00 pm–7:30 pm

• Mason’s Bowling Center, 640 Main St., Leominster
• $4.00 per week (pay fee to ARC volunteers, not directly to Mason’s)
• Ages 6 thru adult (under 18 must have parent or responsible adult present and willing to keep score)

Volunteer scorekeepers are needed to let this program continue! Please help us out!

Mini golf will not be cancelled due to bad weather. In case of rain, league will bowl indoors instead of mini golfing that evening.

Adult Bowling League
3:15 pm to 4:30 pm

• Starts Wednesday, September 24, 2008; Thursday, September 28, 2008
• Mason’s Recreation Center, 40 North Main Street, Leominster, MA  01453
• 4.50 per week. Bowling shoes are available free of charge.

Bowling will be held every Wednesday and Thursday except on holidays, school vacations, when cancelled due to inclement weather or as noted on the calendar. Any day that there is no school in Fitchburg or Leominster, bowling will automatically be cancelled. Any day when ARC Community Services Day Programs are “open with no transportation”, bowling will automatically be cancelled (even if some separate companies continue to provide transportation). If weather conditions worsen during the day, cancellation of “ARC Community Service bowling league” will be announced on WEIM Radio Station (1280AM) by 12:30PM.

A bus will be provided from ARC to Mason’s on a first-registered basis; additional individuals may use Dial-a-Ride or secure their own transportation to Mason’s. There is NO return transportation; each bowler is responsible for their own transportation home from Mason’s. Please be sure all rides are there by 4:30P pm. (Note new time).

Every effort will be made to accommodate your preference for the day you bowl. However, if numbers of registrations are significantly uneven, we may need to switch you to the alternate day. Should you be scheduled for a day other than your first choice, you will be notified. We are very much in need of Scorekeepers this year; if you can volunteer to help each week and keep this program going, please complete information below. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Please complete the bowling registration form and return it by September 1, 2007 to Ruth Nicholson, ARC Community Services, 564 Main Street, Fitchburg, MA  01420

Other Sports

In addition to Special Olympics sports, we sponsor a candlepin bowling league as well as miniature golf.

Although not affiliated with ARC Community Services, the Montachusett Challenger Little League is available to for 6- to 22-year-olds.

ARC Community Services Recreation Department Snow Policy

Bowling
Any day that there is no school in Fitchburg or Leominster, bowling will automatically be cancelled. Any day when ARC Community Services Day Programs are “open with no transportation”, bowling will automatically be cancelled (even if some separate companies continue to provide transportation).

If weather conditions worsen during the day, cancellation of “ARC Community Service’s bowling league” will be called in to WEIM Radio Station (1280AM) by 12:30PM. After that time, please listen to the radio or call ARC directly (978-343-6662) to confirm bowling on days when the weather may be questionable.

Weekend Recreation Club (Drop-In)
A message to announce that the Weekend Recreation Club (Drop-in) is closed will be placed on the Rec. Club’s telephone extension at ARC by 11:00AM. Call ARC Community Services at 978-343-6662; when the main number’s recording begins, enter extension 137 to hear the message.

Cancellations of the “ARC WEEKEND RECREATION CLUB” will be called in to Radio Station WEIM (1280AM). Please be aware however that this station is sometimes not staffed on the weekend so cancellations may not make it on to the air.

Please BE SURE Recreation Club is open before leaving home; we don’t want anyone stranded at a closed building! Reminder – in bad weather it is especially important to walk club members into the building to ensure it’s open, that there are no changes in operating hours, etc.

Dances (and Other Special Evening Events)
Cancellation of “ARC Community Service dance” or event will be called in to WEIM Radio Station (1280AM) by 3:00PM. Please listen to the radio or call ARC directly (978-343-6662) prior to 4:00PM to confirm dances or other evening activities on days when the weather may be questionable. After hours you may call ARC and enter extension 137 for a recorded message if an event is cancelled.

For more information, please contact ARC Community Services at (978) 343-6662 or email us at .