Harris County Champs look to make a splash in Georgia Special Olympics

HAMILTON, Ga. (WTVM) – The Harris County Champs are “rocking and bowling” into their inaugural season.

From the bowling lane to the swimming lane, this group is set to make waves in the Special Olympics.

“To see the joy on their faces, it’s just priceless,” said Angela Pavlakos, management team chair of Harris County Special Olympics.

Pavlakos said she helped start the Harris County Champs to get kids with special needs out of the house, including her son, Jacob, who has autism. She explained while living in Chicago, Jacob was exposed to many opportunities with adaptive sports, but that all changed when she moved to the south.

“When we first moved to Georgia, there was nothing here for us, especially in Harris County,” she said. “So he really suffered; didn’t have anything to participate in. Now that this is up and running, he is so happy, he’s active and it’s a nice change. The personality, and his self confidence, and the friendships.”

Speaking of friends, there are currently 20 Harris County Champs. Guys and girls ages 8-and-up can join, no matter the skill level.

“I wanted to join Special Oympics because I wanted to see my friends over summer, before school started back up,” said Champ Devin.

He also gave me a few tips on how to throw only strikes. He says it’s all about the “spin”.

Champ Jordan is both a bowler and a swimmer, but says he prefers bowling because just like Devin, he rolls strikes.

What’s an athlete without a coach? For this squad, it’s all volunteer coaches, like Gary Krannacker. His son, Luke, is also on the team and tells me there’s no better feeling than watching the athlete hit their mark.

“We’re improving week over week and seeing a lot of good strides being made by all of the athletes, including Luke,” Krannacker said.

As a volunteer coach, most of the costs come out of pocket. Pavlakos said this is where the community comes in and lends a helping hand.

“All of our donors, God bless them, they have contributed beautifully to make this possible,” she explained. “The facility makes this possible by giving us a reduced rate, and some of the other facilities have no charge. It’s a blessing in the community for all of these people to come together and do this for these kids.”

The Champs are still actively recruiting players and coaches. If you’d like to get involved, send an email to this address: harriscountychamps@gmail.com or find them on Facebook.

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