Special Olympics Receives Funding 
In Fiscal Year 2005 alone, Healthy Athletes received nearly US$18 million in support through corporate, foundation, and government funding as well as budget-relieving, in-kind products and services. While all sources of program support are vital, U.S. federal funding represents the largest component of Healthy Athletes support. In fact, over the past five years, Special Olympics has secured more than US$22 million dollars from the U.S. government to expand our Healthy Athletes® and research programs in both the United States and around the world
As you may know, our U.S. federal funding comes through the Congressional Labor/Health and Human Services/Education appropriations bill. The most recent funding bill, which passed in December 2005, includes US$5.7 million for Healthy Athletes, a reduction from last year's US$5.89 million. A December 15, 2005 Washington Post story underscored the challenge that we faced:
"Overall, the health and education bill came in about $1.5 billion smaller than last year's version. Numerous programs were trimmed, frozen or granted modest increases, including Meals on Wheels, Head Start and heating assistance for low-income people. The widely supported National Institutes of Health received its smallest funding increase since 1970."
Although we again secured significant US federal funding, we must remain vigilant to ensure that we continue to receive funding in the years ahead. Every Healthy Athletes clinician should look for opportunities to raise awareness among leaders in government about Special Olympics and why our programs are important. U.S.-based clinicians can help make the case for Healthy Athletes by writing letters to your Members of Congress that inform policymakers of your experience with the program and how and why it benefits people with intellectual disabilities. If you can, enclose photos of athletes and clinicians at a Healthy Athletes venue to better illustrate how Special Olympics benefits their constituents back home.
For those clinicians based outside of the United States, we encourage you to also document your experiences about why these programs are important to you. Please take some time out of your day after a Healthy Athletes event and write a letter addressed to 'Dear Member of Congress'. Simply put, the letter should thank the Congress for supporting Special Olympics. The letter also should explain how many athletes were there, services offered and any other vital data that you can share. Finally, you should tailor the letter with your own experiences and thoughts.
Special Olympics Headquarters will strategically route your letter to select government leaders for the most impact. Please send your letters and photographs to:
Government Relations
Special Olympics
1133 19th St. NW
Washington, DC 20036-3604, USA
>> Return to Healthy Athletes Update, Winter 2006 |
