Athletic excellence and school spirit go hand in hand at Bishop Tonnos Catholic Secondary School in Ancaster, and never more so than with its Special Olympics teams.
Like all Titans athletes, the Bishop Tonnos Special Olympics team members constantly strive to do their best and in doing so know that they have their entire BT community behind them, supporting them and cheering them on. Whether competing locally in bocce, basketball, floor hockey or soccer or battling for a gold medal at the SO Provincials, the Titans SO teams appreciate the support they get from their fellow Titans, especially during school pep rallies. As BT Principal Mrs. Maria Calabrese states, “Our Special Olympics student athletes are such a huge part of our school spirit and we’re really proud of them.”
Bishop Tonnos’ partnership with Special Olympics Ontario High School Championships began in 2017 when teacher Mrs. Linda Siena was asked if she would coach a single track and field athlete who went on to win gold medals at back-to-back Provincial Championships at Brock and Trent Universities. In 2019, under Coach Siena, Bishop Tonnos won gold in Unified Basketball at the World Championships in Toronto and last year won gold in Unified Soccer in Kingston Provincial Championships. Coach Siena reflects upon the program’s growth at BT: “Special Olympics has grown from one lone track star to taking everyone who wants to go. It is AMAZING.” Coach Siena acknowledges the support she receives from fellow coaches, school administration, teachers, EAs, and the supportive parents and families in the stands on road trips. For many SO athletes it is their first trip away from home. As Coach Siena says, “it takes a village.”
Just as the SO program has expanded, so too has its popularity amongst the general student body. When the 2019 Titans Special Olympics team stepped off their coach bus and walked back into the school they were met by several cheering fellow Titans who formed a spontaneous honor guard to welcome them home. Last year the BT community kicked their school spirit up a notch and when the team entered the school after their bus ride back from Kingston they were shocked and thrilled to experience hundreds of Bishop Tonnos staff and students lining the halls, cheering wildly for them, and giving them high-fives as they walked past. Their parents, also constant supporters in the stands, were there to witness the hero’s welcome, a showing of school spirit that the team members and coaches will never forget.
2024 promises to bring a continued successful partnership between Bishop Tonnos and Special Olympics. The Titans have qualified in Unified Basketball and are excitedly Chatham-bound in June. Team members Sebastian Carrera and Jack Wiseman are already putting in the extra work, adding practices and intensifying workouts in the BT Fitness Centre. Jack and Sebastian even took in a Harlem Globetrotters game for basketball inspiration and they and their Titan teammates will be ready to do their best at this year’s Provincial High School Championships. They will leave it all on the court in true Titans fashion and will no doubt return to Bishop Tonnos for a hero’s welcome that deserves to go viral and catch on in every participating high school in the province – the school halls lined with cheering staff and fellow students, acknowledging their provincial-level efforts and letting them know, through school spirit, just how important they are to the fabric of their school communities.
Written by Lori Edwards, coach and Educational Assistant