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Local Special Olympics team hosts carnival to raise funds

Idaho’s Special Olympics Summer Games are next month in Moscow. A Pocatello team held a fundraiser to help get them there.

The Pocatello Wildcats hosted a carnival inside Pine Ridge Mall Saturday to help pay for the team’s transportation to Moscow, which is 351 miles away. Budget cuts to the Special Olympics program over the years has forced the team to rely on their own funds.

“It used to be that we got so much national and state funding that we didn’t have to fundraise for anything beyond our uniforms,” said Kalyn Anderson, local program coordinator.

With a team of 40 athletes and around 20 coaches, junior coaches and volunteers, it’s not going to be a cheap ride. The charter bus and fuel costs are estimated around $5,000. That’s on top of the room and board costs for the team.

The carnival featured a number of games and inflatables, and even had some superheroes and Disney princesses singing their classics.

Married couple Shannon Park and Jordon Park have been teammates for a couple years. For Shannon, the state summer competition would be another fun experience under her belt.

“When I compete, I go out there for the fun of it,” she said. “So competing is more like I’m running for fun.”

Jordon agrees, since neither have been to Moscow yet.

“It’s more about having fun; if you win, you win, if you lose, you lose,” he said. “It just gives us a great experience. Maybe some fun, maybe (we’ll) make some friends.”

If you missed the carnival, it doesn’t mean you can’t help. You can contact Anderson directly at (208) 251-3281 for more information about donating directly to the team.

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