SOMO Sum Ups: July 17-24

July 24, 2023 | Athletes, Coaches, Events, Families, Fundraiser, KC Metro Area, LETR, North Area, Programming, Southeast Area, Sports, St. Louis Metro Area, Uncategorized, Volunteers

Here’s a look back at all of the amazing Special Olympics Missouri (SOMO) events from July 17-24.

Statewide Tip-a-Cop: July 17-21

Last week was our annual Statewide Tip-a-Cop! At different locations all across the state, police officers waited on people at different restaurants. All tips they received come back to SOMO. We are very grateful for our statewide partnership with LETR. A big thank you to everyone who participated in this year’s events!

KC Metro/ North Area Tennis Tournament: July 19

Kansas City hosted a KC Metro/ North Area tennis tournament Wednesday afternoon! Great work to everyone who participated!

Brie Haines Buck O’Neil Legacy Seat: July 19

SOMO board member Brie Haines had the honor and privilege of sitting in the Buck O’Neil Legacy Seat at the Kansas City Royals game Wednesday night! Congratulations Brie!

Click here to see Brie at the game!

Price Cutter Charity Championship: July 20-23

Special Olympics Missouri was very excited to be a part of the Price Cutter Charity Championship again this week in Springfield. We were able to volunteer as hole marshals for No. 17 at the championship, and we had a lot of fun!

Springfield Smoothie King Summer Celebration: July 20

Smoothie King in Springfield hosted a Summer Celebration on Thursday with 100% of sales (not just profit!) going toward SOMO! Shoutout to everyone who stopped by and bought a smoothie, we were able to raise nearly $2000!

Flame of Hope Poker Run: July 22

Our 5th annual Flame of Hope Poker Run was this Saturday in St. Joseph. Along with the ride, there was lunch, entertainment, a 50/50 raffle and prizes! Special Olympics USA athlete Charlie Phillips presented the prizes to the winners. Thank you to everyone for supporting SOMO!

SE Area/ STL Metro Area Softball Tournament: July 22

Cape Girardeau hosted the SE Area/ STL Metro Area Softball Tournament on Saturday! More than 200 SOMO athletes competed in this full day of softball and fun. Special thank you to the Cape Fire Department for providing first aid and medal presentations all day!

KC Block Party: July 22

More than 600 people came out to support Special Olympics Missouri (SOMO) at the first-ever Kansas City Block Party on Saturday, July 22.

The inaugural event was held in the SOMO parking lot across from Kauffman Stadium and Arrowhead Stadium (9150 E. 41^st Terrace, KCMO 64133).

“Above and beyond my expectations,” Kansas City Development Director Christina Hunt said. “The number of people that showed up to support this event and Special Olympics Missouri was overwhelming. I could not even have imagined this, and it happened. I’m excited beyond belief.”

There was a great lineup of entertainment throughout the day, including a visit from the Kansas City Chiefs cheerleaders and KC Wolf. The KC Marching Wildcats and the William Chrisman dance team also performed at the block party.

“Today was really awesome,” Kansas City Program Director Meg Ward said. “We had a ton of people come. It just felt like so much community buy-in for this event. We had a lot of sponsors, vendors and food trucks. Plus, a lot of athletes and their families came, so it was a huge success.