Changing minds, one gold medal at a time

Bernice Lindsey doesn't think her son would be alive today if not for Special Olympics.

Because of potential heart defects and other health problems, the average life expectancy of a person with Down syndrome is about 55 years. Kenny, who lives in Carol Stream, is 57, has survived a heart operation, and just won a gold medal in power lifting.

He's participated as an athlete in Special Olympics for 36 years, thriving on the exercise, the competition, and the camaraderie. Among Special Olympians, that makes him an old-timer who's experienced how public response to people with disabilities has changed in that time.

This Saturday, a celebration at Soldier Field will mark 40 years since Special Olympics began in Chicago. The competition grown from a ridiculed experiment with no one watching from the stands into an international phenomenon that involves 2.5 million athletes from 175 countries.

More importantly, the anniversary marks a turning point in public attitude - now treating people with intellectual disabilities for what they can do, rather than what they can't do.

While Kenny was growing up in Kansas, there were no organized sports for people with disabilities. Authorities wouldn't let him attend public school.

"It hadn't been too long ago," his mother said, "people didn't take their children out. They kept 'em at home and nobody knew anything about them. They didn't figure these handicapped people could do anything. So since then, they've really come a long way."

A Yale study found that those who participate in Special Olympics develop better social skills than their non-participating counterparts, enabling them to attend public schools or have a job, and in some cases live independently.

That was unheard of in 1965, when Illinois Justice Anne Burke was a young physical education teacher attending a seminar by Dr. Bill Freeberg of Southern Illinois University, who promoted the benefits of outdoor recreation for people with mental retardation, the "R" word which has since fallen out of favor.

When Burke proposed the first Special Olympics, she got flak from skeptics who thought it exploited and embarrassed those who had trouble with basic motor skills.

"People said, 'You're putting these kids on display! Who do you think you are?' " she said.

Burke got support from the Chicago Park District and financing from President John Kennedy's sister Eunice Kennedy Shriver, whose sister Rosemary had intellectual disabilities. Now, she is gratified to see people with special needs develop physical skills and make the most of their abilities.

After the success of the Chicago program, Shriver announced the Kennedy Foundation was creating a national program, which has grown steadily since.

In Illinois, Special Olympics now holds 175 local events year-round.

A recent initiative includes teaming up Special Olympians with volunteers from the community to play golf, softball and other sports together.

Another new program offers sports training for children age 2 to 7, in preparation for Special Olympics, which start at age 8. And people with severe disabilities and often in wheelchairs can compete in their own games.

All local participants receive ribbons, and winners go on to state finals in downstate Bloomington-Normal, in a weekend complete with torch-lighting opening ceremonies, hotel stays and dances.

"The people involved get so much out of the program. It helps set the stage for the rest of their life," state spokeswoman Barbara DeGuido said.

One athlete, Susie Doyens of Sycamore, formerly of St. Charles, didn't even speak before she was involved, because she was so shy. Now, because of her passion for golf, she speaks before stadium-size groups to promote the events. Her mother joked that she could have saved a lot of money on therapy if she'd known Special Olympics would help her daughter become a public speaker.

For Burke, now 64, it's all an amazing turnaround in worldwide attitudes, culminating with last year's games in Shanghai.

"To see a country like China celebrating people with disabilities, if for nothing else, it is worthwhile," Burke said, "because that country didn't even permit these people to exist."