Ravenscroft has hosted the Special Olympics of Wake County’s Spring Games since 1991, engaging faculty and staff, students and parents as volunteers and supporters of local youth athletes with disabilities. On April 26, the games returned to campus after a three-year pandemic-related hiatus, and Ravens of all ages reveled in the opportunity to make the day special for participants.

This year’s games included 21 Wake County-area schools, with 215 athletes taking place in events including track, long jump and softball throw as well as game stations for athletes ages 3-7 and developmental games for athletes with physical limitations. Students and teachers from all three divisions lined the walkways and filled the home stands to cheer during the Parade of Athletes — with each school holding their banners proudly as they proceeded — and families of athletes watched for the opportunity to cheer their child during the games. Representatives from the Raleigh Police Department carried the Olympic torch to officially start the games.

According to Facilities Coordinator Megan Moody and Assistant Head of Upper School Tawambi Settles, who co-chaired the school’s planning committee, 240 students and 260 adults served as volunteers for the event, doing everything from managing logistics to acting as buddies for athletes. Among the students, 15 sophomores and 10 juniors had completed Special Olympics’ six-week Youth Games Management training, allowing them to work alongside organizers and train fellow volunteers in the days heading into the games.

Moody said the response to the call for volunteers, which first went out in February, showed how special this event is to the Ravenscroft community.

“It was amazing to see the number of [volunteer] submissions coming in from those who had participated in the past and those who were new to the Ravenscroft community and wanted to be a part of an inspirational day, especially since Ravenscroft had not hosted for three years due to COVID,” she said. “I even received emails from some of these volunteers expressing how excited they were to hear that Special Olympics was back at Ravenscroft.”

Count former Lower School teacher Grace Hancock among the people who welcomed the return of the games to campus. She was chair of the planning committee when the games first came to Ravenscroft in 1991.

“I had the honor of connecting the school with the Wake County Special Olympics when they needed an athletic facility in which to compete. And in my mind, Ravenscroft had the very best facilities in Wake County!” she remembered. “Returning to Ravenscroft’s campus on April 21 to attend the opening ceremonies with [former colleagues] Carol Smith and Mary Catherine Phelps brought me more joy than I can even describe. Everyone welcoming the athletes and continuing to value the relationship with Special Olympics demonstrates to me that the lessons learned on the athletic field are not only important but necessary. As Ravenscroft’s students watch and cheer for the Olympians competing, I am convinced everyone in the stadium learns lessons of overcoming obstacles, appreciating differences and accepting diversity. Along with the Special Olympic athletes, Ravenscroft is changing the world!”

Settles agreed, noting that the opportunities for students to step into leadership roles presented an authentic way to exercise the citizen leadership competencies that are such an integral part of the Ravenscroft experience through Lead From Here.

“By actively managing and facilitating the Special Olympics, students could experience the benefits of effective communication when making impactful decisions. Additionally, students encountered challenges that allowed them to strengthen and develop essential Lead From Here concepts like accountability, empathy, and adaptability. Finally, students experienced the importance of collaboration, coming together to achieve their goals, and increasing their stakes in the event's successful outcome,” he said.

Zoe Fitzpatrick ’25, who has volunteered for Special Olympics in the past, said she was gratified to have the opportunity to engage more deeply through YGM training and a leadership role in managing the track competition.

“As the events ended and the athletes gathered to appreciate the medals and ribbons they had received, I felt a sense of pride and satisfaction that is hard to put into words,” she said. “I knew that I had helped to create a meaningful and memorable experience for these athletes and that they would carry their achievements from that day with them for a long time to come — as would I.”

Seeing such dedication to the quality of the athletes’ experiences meant a lot to the families who came to watch their children compete. Jeremy Grove, the father of a 12-year-old athlete from Hortons Creek Elementary, wrote Head of School Doreen Kelly to share his appreciation.

“I must say that your students, staff and volunteers all made me and my daughter feel special and part of their community. Amidst the craziness that is a multischool event, and one that has the challenge of catering to children with a wide range of special needs, your students showed these kids so much love and compassion,” he said in his email. “I couldn’t hold back the tears when the kids were getting off of the buses to crowds of students cheering them on. I can only imagine that they ‘get it,’ which speaks volumes about your culture and staff.”

For Moody and Settles — and the hundreds of volunteers who put so many hours toward guaranteeing a smooth and successful event — hearing those words makes all of their efforts worthwhile.

“I am beyond grateful to all the volunteers from the Ravenscroft community that came out and helped make the day absolutely special for all the athletes,” Moody concluded. “That is what it is all about — providing love and encouragement to these athletes — and the Ravenscroft community did just that. Thank you!” 

Enjoy more photos from the day’s events on our Flickr page. Read reflections from two participants in the Youth Game Management training program in our first-person storytelling feature, Voices.