Veteran Special Olympian is helping others dip their toes into competition and fundraising

Journal Inquirer - 2/19/2024

Feb. 19—At an age when some athletes are considering retirement, Alison Smith isn't ready to do so. The 44-year-old, who has been a figure skater, a runner, and a bowler in the Special Olympics, still enjoys competition.

But Smith, who has competed in sports across the country and around the world, has moved into a role as an ambassador and is helping others follow in her footsteps.

Playing sports has brought her great joy, and while she continues to participate, the Shelton resident has also been involved off the playing field — and in ice-cold waters — to help others feel the thrill of victory.

Since the Special Olympics was founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the program has provided year-round sports training and competitions for athletes of all ages with intellectual disabilities in more than 170 countries, and its unified sports program joins athletes of all abilities to play together to encourage social inclusion through sport.

For Smith, who is high-functioning despite her undiagnosed disability, the Special Olympics has given her the opportunity to compete on the national and international level, and has taken her to competitions in Iowa and Nebraska, as well as Dublin, Ireland, through her role as an ambassador.

"I thought it was a wonderful experience to try out," she said.

"Special Olympics has been amazing for us," said her father, Steve Smith, who previously served as the chairman of the Connecticut Special Olympics' board of directors. "We've met so many amazing people. We never would've met the people we know now if not for the Olympics. Alison's been involved for almost 20 years. She's got more friends, been more places."

The father and daughter duo also get to team up as bowling partners through the unified sports program.

He said that the Special Olympics "shows that people with disabilities can do more than is expected of them," and urges the parents of the athletes to become more involved.

"Most parents don't realize how much they can do, or how often they can get involved," Steve Smith said.

One of those ways is through fundraising, with several events held year-round. In the chill of winter and early spring, it's the Penguin Plunges that send brave participants into the cold waters of area lakes and the Long Island Sound.

The first penguin plunge this year will take place in Middletown on Feb. 24, while other events will be held from March through April in Brookfield, Fairfield, Groton, Monroe, and Tolland.

Smith became involved in the plunges in the 1990s with her father, both taking the chilly dip into Great Hollow Lake in Monroe. She said the water was "a little bit cold," but that taking the plunge was "so much fun."

"I like trying different challenges, and trying something new every day," Smith said.

As for her father, jumping the water was "a little insane, but it raised a lot of money," he said.

Smith said she hasn't made the plunge in the last few years, but will instead volunteer at the Monroe event, which will be held on April 13.

Debbie Horne, senior director of communications and marketing for Special Olympics Connecticut, said those who want to participate but cannot attend the scheduled events can do so through the virtual plunge, which can be completed by April 30.

Those who do the virtual plunge can take photos or video and post them on Facebook or Twitter with the hashtag #PenguinPlunge.

"They can get creative," Horne said, adding that virtual participants can simply take a cold shower or jump in their own pool. "During COVID, some did it in their hot tubs."

More information on participating in a local Penguin Plunge is available on the Special Olympics Connecticut website.

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