‘A wonderful feeling’

Geneva Police Officer Chuck Parisi can be rightly proud of the thousands of dollars he has helped collect over two decades of volunteering on behalf of Special Olympics.

But the moral of his story, told by our Cops & Crime columnists Charles Keeshan and Susan Sarkauskas on Friday, has less to do with raising money than with raising consciousness, and on that count, he offers an object lesson more about getting than giving.

Stated bluntly, you do a lot of good when you donate to the organization that sponsors competitive activities for people of all ages with developmental disabilities, but, whether you donate thousands of dollars or never give a dime to the group, you’ll get a reward from attending a Special Olympics event that no amount of money can equal.

“It helped me not to be a jaded person. It reset my perception,” Parisi told our writers, pointing out that the events he has participated in have helped him dismiss a natural cynicism to which police can become prone when dealing constantly with the darker side of humanity.

People with special needs are not criminals, of course, but if you don’t associate with them often, it is easy to develop stereotypes born more of speculation about what they cannot do rather than understanding what they can accomplish, about what makes their lives seem challenging rather than about how much they can and do help others.

And that spirit extends to nearly every corner of the Special Olympics experience. Athletes demonstrate the epitome of competitive fever, tempered by a compassion and sense of accomplishment, regardless of outcome, that higher-level competitive sports are supposed to evoke but often fall short of. Volunteers come from nearly all walks of life, every gender, every social class and every age, providing physical assistance and emotional guidance with a unifying grace that, as Parisi suggests, can help us appreciate the full measure of our positive potential as human beings.

Special Olympics is supported by a variety of activities, and police officers and police organizations are among the system’s most visible champions. Keeshan and Sarkauskus reported that more than 100,000 officers nationwide take part every year in a Law Enforcement Torch Run, polar plunge, Cop on a Rooftop and other fund-raising programs that have generated more than $600 million since 1981. The Geneva department alone raised $46,387 last year, nearly three times more than the average department. The Illinois chapter of the Law Enforcement Torch Run says on its web site that the project has earned more than $70 million since 1986.

These are impressive figures, but there’s something more to consider. The Torch Run, in which 3,000 officers from every branch of the service take turns carrying a Flame of Hope more than 1,500 miles through thousands of Illinois communities, will conclude at the Special Olympics Illinois Summer Games in Normal June 7-9. If you donate to one of the police or other supporting agencies, you can know you are supporting a uniquely uplifting experience for thousands of special athletes. But if you really want to be uniquely uplifted, attend the event, or one of the many other Special Olympics competitions throughout the suburbs leading up to it, in person.

We’re betting that, like Parisi and his thousands of fellow officers, you’ll leave saying to yourself, “What a wonderful feeling this is.”