Families
Families are at the heart of Special Olympics, championing inclusion, building community, and driving impact every day. Whether you're new or already involved, there are countless ways to connect, lead, and grow with us.
Get Involved
Family Engagement Toolkit and Resources
Find practical tools, templates, and strategies to help strengthen family engagement, celebrate family voices, and support inclusive planning across the movement.
Special Olympics Handbook for Effective Family Engagement
Handbook for Program leaders who want to engage family members with close connections to the Program.
Core Resources for Family Engagement
Essential tools and strategies to help Programs engage, support, and retain families—available in multiple languages.
Communications & Promotional Materials
Banners, icons, templates, and more to help promote family engagement across events and platforms.
Forms & Templates
Ready-to-use materials for family registration, official communications, and training recognition.
Family Member Resources
Guides and tools to help families get involved, understand their role, and explore ways to volunteer and support.
Family Training
Designed to train families as leaders in the movement. This training can be used at any level of the organization.
How to Integrate Families
Engage, educate, and empower families so they become impactful teachers of inclusion.
Decision Making
Much like athlete leaders in decision-making, we must also engage families who offer unique insight and lived experience.
Review Process
Families offer insight when reviewing documents, strategies, and plans. Their experience helps ensure language and priorities reflect family needs.
Story Telling
Share stories of families and highlight their role in advancing inclusion. These stories inspire others and help us learn what truly works in communities.
Add to Advisory Groups
Including families on advisory groups and councils brings essential perspectives rooted in daily experience. Their voices help shape more effective decisions.
Stories From the Home
The voices, journeys, and moments of families in the Special Olympics movement.
A Father-Son Team Teeing Up for USA Games
For Jacob Murasko, few things beat a sunny day on the golf course with his dad, Paul, by his side. Golf isn’t just their shared hobby, it’s their connection, their laughter, their way of showing up for each other. And now, that connection is taking them somewhere incredible: the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games, where they’ll compete together as Unified partners.
Lighting the Way Series, Part 3: A Family’s Journey with Special Olympics
Claudia Peña’s journey with Special Olympics began through her daughter, Paola, but quickly became a shared family experience, one where her family not only found community, but a deeper understanding of inclusion and resilience.
Lighting the Way Series, Part 2: Parent Perspective
Family engagement is more than attending events—it’s about taking an active role in helping the development of Special Olympics athletes and Programs.
Special Olympics Senegal Celebrates World Youth Skills Day and International Youth Day
Special Olympics Senegal brought together athletes, families, partners, and supporters to mark World Youth Skills Day and International Youth Day.
Global Family Leadership Council
2026 – 2028 GFLC
2023 – 2025 GFLC
Rafael Arce
Special Olympics Latin America - Venezuela
Liliana Cupsa
Special Olympics Europe Eurasia -Romania
Ali Dashti
Special Olympics Middle East / North Africa - Kuwait
Asia Aledwan
Special Olympics Middle East / North Africa - Jordan
Michael Frueh
Special Olympics Europe Eurasia - Hungary
Lumi Kuang
Special Olympics East Asia - Macau
Vimbai Njovo
Special Olympics Africa - Zimbabwe
Jillian Pierre
Special Olympics North America - Trinidad & Tobago
Fabiana Rijo
Special Olympics Latin America - Argentina
Rajah Sy
Special Olympics Africa - Senegal
Daphne Tan
Special Olympics Asia Pacific - Malaysia
Jennifer VanSkiver
Special Olympics North America - Michigan
Global Family Leadership Council
Amal Khafaoui
Special Olympics Middle East/North Africa - Sibling
Gang PENG
Special Olympics East Asia - Parent
Wendy Trotter
Special Olympics North America - Parent
Pelotlhomogi Rantseo
Special Olympics Africa - Parent
Vaiva Abramaviciute de Silva
Special Olympics Europe Eurasia - Caregiver
Claudia Peña Testa
Special Olympics Latin America - Parent
Nauman Mehboob
Special Olympics Asia Pacific - Parent
Additional Resources
Get Involved
Africa
soafricafamilies@specialolympics.org
Asia Pacific
soapfamilies@specialolympics.org
East Asia
soeafamilies@specialolympics.org
Europe Eurasia
soeefamilies@specialolympics.org
Latin America
solafamilies@specialolympics.org
Middle East / North Africa
somenafamilies@specialolympics.org
Partners