SOMO News

Mike and Karen Garrison are parents to Colin, Missouri’s sole athlete competing at the 2019 World Games in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

This has been a day that’s hard to put into words – in a good way. But we’ll try.

Colin and the other USA men wrapped up singles play. And like every other day, it was full of nail biters. Every match seemed to come down to a gnat’s eyelash in measurements. Some went our way, some didn’t.

Colin played 1 match today against a very good young man from Costa Rica. They were really evenly matched. We were so proud of how well Colin maintained his composure under lots of pressure. His coach told him to take some deep breaths and stay focused. (Just like both of you did, Coach Larry and Coach Terri. You would have been proud.)

After a nail biting match, Colin came away with the win! We were so thrilled for him. He won 2 and lost 1 which put him in medal contention. We just got back from the awards ceremony and he won the silver! We are so proud he could win a medal in singles. It’s something he’s worked hard on for many years. To see him receive that medal on the world stage gave us chills. Pinching ourselves.

Oh, and there were a couple of other big moments today. When we got to the match, the coach told us Senator Roy Blunt had come to the games and hoped to stop by to meet Colin since he’s the only athlete from Missouri. Well, he did show up with his wife Abby and son Charlie. They watched the whole match and couldn’t have been nicer or more interested in Colin and learning about bocce.

And to add a little more excitement to the match Tim Shriver, CEO of Special Olympics and Eunice Kennedy’s son, and his wife Linda came to watch the match with the Blunts. No pressure, Colin. Just play your game and don’t mind the important people watching! And that’s what he did. He stayed focused and won a great match. Proud doesn’t begin to describe how we felt.

After the match, they were excited to meet Colin and congratulate him and the other athletes. They were warm and kind and interested in Colin.

Oh and then it was time to join this group for lunch! Tim and Linda Shriver, Roy, Abby and Charlie Blunt plus their staff and representatives from the embassy, Colin, his coach and us had a lovely meal together. Not what we expected when we got up this morning! Like we said, we were pinching each other.

In the world of Special Olympics it really doesn’t get any more amazing than this. And every one of them took a genuine interest in Colin. We expressed our appreciation for them taking time with Colin and us. Tim said this is his favorite part of what he does- getting to spend time with the athletes. He even asked Colin how to do his trademark stretch/lean position for bocce.

And we learned Senator Blunt was one of the people who sponsored legislation for the Healthy Athletes’ program. This is a screening program for Special Olympics for many health issues like vision, hearing, dentistry etc. It’s been very valuable in helping athletes get tested and treated for health issues. One of the USA athletes was fitted for hearing aids and another is getting new glasses. It’s a great program inside a fantastic program.

Well, like we said it’s been a pretty amazing day! It’s hard to imagine what could top this!

Again we extend our thanks to all of you who’ve cheered on Colin and supported him over the years. Who would have imagined our curly-headed toddler with an unknown future would be in Abu Dhabi winning World Olympic medals and having lunch with senators and CEOs? As we often say, we’re just along for the ride. Colin is the star who inspires us. How blessed are we to have him and all these athletes in our lives. They set the example of how to live our lives – with open hearts, outstretched hands and open minds.