The Rockhaven School For Exceptional Children’s basketball team proudly represented their school at the 2019 Special Olympics Ontario Invitational Youth Games held in Toronto last May. Team members include Brooke Berube, Zachary Olmstead, Kaley Crawford, Brandon Drakes-Kalaw and coaches Pat Cook and John Clayton.
After qualifying for the Invitational Youth Games, the team worked on their skills, teamwork and sportsmanship daily. During this time, players displayed their leadership skills by teaching other students various basketball skills. Rockhaven demonstrated hard work, dedication and sportsmanship throughout the year.
At the Invitational Youth Games, the team displayed great teamwork, ensuring that all players were accepted and included. They cheered on other basketball teams during breaks and made sure to congratulate other teams whether they won or lost.
Special Olympics Ontario received many worthy nominations and an extensive selection process was conducted. The selection committee felt that Rockhaven was the strongest candidate for the award based on their strong leadership skills and dedication to the athletes of Special Olympics Ontario.