Yuma community supports Special Olympics
Adrik Vargas
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – The Yuma community came together this morning for the Ninth annual “Breakfast with Champions” to raise money for local Special Olympics athletes.
The funds help athletes train, compete, and do what they love year-round.
Jamie Heckerman said the program has grown a lot over the years.
“I’ve seen that evolution, started just a small program that mainly did one or two sports here, and now they do several…five or six in the fall, another five or six in spring,” Heckerman explained.
For the first time, the event was open to the public.
Lisa Ball said, “This year, we wanted to make sure that the whole community could come celebrate our athletes and see how awesome they are.”
Athlete Michelle Hornung said she plans to keep competing as long as she can.
“For as long as I can still do it,” she said.
Ball added that all the proceeds stay in Yuma to support equipment, uniforms, transportation, and more for the athletes.