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This is Chris Redgrave for Zions Bank Speaking on Business.
How many companies globally would be able to say their brand has 98 percent recognition and 96 percent favorability worldwide.....? In the business world, that would be huge! And that's what you'll have with Special Olympics ....
Special Olympics is a movement to create a better life for people around the world with intellectual disabilities.... And they've been doing that, free of charge, to participants since the late 60s..... The fact is, they serve millions of athletes with intellectual disabilities worldwide, with new programs being added all the time .... And supporting efforts here in Utah are over 4,000 volunteers.... Just another reason Utah has been listed first for volunteerism for the last seven years.
Beginning this fall, Special Olympics Utah will debut Project Unify and Unified Sports in around 40 high schools statewide..... What it does is pair students with and without intellectual disabilities in teams and allows them to then compete against other unified sports... That provides students with intellectual disabilities more chances to participate and helps their peers better understand who they are and what they have to offer....
Project Unify takes the most vulnerable people in the school and integrates them into general student population, so they are able to develop higher self-esteem and are more active.... Ironically, it's the students without intellectual disabilities that report some of the highest benefits. According to Amy Hansen, Special Olympics Utah CEO, it's the largest project of its kind in the organization's history...
Amy cited research that shows individuals who participate in Special Olympics will live five years longer than their peers who don't participate, not to mention they're seven times more likely to be employed... What that says is, Special Olympics helps provide their athletes with a better quality of life and better integration into the community... There's also learning life skills, social activity and self-esteem development ....
Special Olympics is now in 180 countries and has four and a half million athletes....It advocates for quality of life, social acceptance, increased lifespan, overall health, wellness and employability ....
For Zions Bank, I'm Chris Redgrave, speaking on business.
Special Olympics Utah 243 E. 400 South, Ste. 111 Salt Lake City, UT 84111 801-363-1111 www.sout.org
