For two years now, schools from all over Section V, including Honeoye Falls-Lima High School, have been a part of the Unified Basketball program. Section V and the Special Olympics partnered up in the spring of 2015 and got 14 schools to field teams. This past season there were 21 teams participating. The program pairs students with and without disabilities. Disabilities could be cognitive and/or minor physical ones. The 2016 HF-L team consisted of 19 students and the coaching staff was comprised of faculty and student athletes.
This past week the team celebrated the season with a banquet. The team invited us to the celebration, so we could hear about the team’s experiences and why the program is so important.
Peter Stakos is a sophomore who has been on the team for two years. Basketball is his favorite sport and the Unified Program gave him the chance to play the sport he loves. The aspect of basketball he treasured the most was defending and rebounding, and he even made four baskets this past season. Stakos’ favorite memory was seeing all his teammates play well.
Camryn Rennoldson, another sophomore and two-time team member, likes playing the sport with her friends. She especially likes winning, but even more than that, having fun.
Gavin Germonto is a junior who has been on the team for both years. He enjoyed the fun times with all of his friends that were on the team. Germonto hopes that in the future more people will join the team and have the chance to have a positive experience like he did.
Dylan Kipfer is a senior and a two-time team member. He relished the opportunity to meet new people and wishes that the program had been available during his entire time in the high school.
Just by talking to the team members you can see how important this program is to them. Not only is it important to the students that play, but it’s also important to the coaches. Emma Ross is a senior who played on the Varsity Girls Basketball team. Her friends mentioned to her last year how much fun coaching the Unified team was, so this year she joined the coaching staff. Being in this position helped her remember why she began playing. The best benefit of the Unified Program according to Ross was that it gave the students an opportunity to shine. Similarly, Ryan Shaw, another senior and coach, was told about the program by one of his teammates on the Varsity Boys Basketball team. Shaw enjoys the sport and is so thankful for the opportunity to help others who enjoy it just as much as him. The team is additionally coached by many other student-athletes and HF-L faculty members, Cory Quinter and Jim Arrigenna.
Brian Donohue, the Athletic Director at HF-L, was part of the committee that was instrumental in bringing the Unified Program to Section V. He explained how impressed he was by the teams who competed and made special note to the fact that it was “real” basketball. The teams all play by the exact same rules that the varsity programs follow; there are no changes to the game. Donohue discussed the smaller-scale Unified Program that was in HF-L’s Manor Intermediate School and the success the Athletic Department saw at that level. According to him, the next step in expanding the Unified Program in the Honeoye Falls-Lima School District is setting up a modified team for HF-L Middle School students.
