Bayfield High School’s volleyball team, the school’s physical education department and other athletic programs such as the school’s unified bowling team are collaborating to highlight the importance of inclusion and teamwork, supporting people with disabilities.
The school will hold its first BHS Unified Volleyball Showcase on Tuesday before the Wolverines’ home volleyball match against Farmington.
The unified volleyball showcase event, organized via Special Olympics Unified Sports, will begin at 5 p.m. There will also be a bake sale and silent auction, starting at 3:50 p.m. when the doors open.
“Bayfield High School is proud to showcase the collaboration of our student groups and athletic programs,” Bayfield High volleyball coach Terene Foutz said in a news release. “Our BHS students are great community representatives, and we are excited to present a fun-filled event to share with everyone.”
Special Olympics Unified Sports, which has more than 1 million people worldwide taking part in it, is designed to help break down stereotypes about people with intellectual disabilities by “promoting social inclusion through shared sports training and competition experiences,” according to its website.
BHS Unified partner students Kieley White Thunder and Rachel Nava said in the release that the Bayfield Unified Physical Education Class offers “opportunities to learn the real definition of leadership and acceptance,” adding that the work done to grow in those areas has a “fulfilling” impact.
“With equity, we are changing the future one day at a time,” BHS Unified teacher Sarah Ripley said in another release about the event.
For more information, visit the event’s Facebook page, which can also be found on the district’s website.
mhollinshead@durangoherald.com
