![Raluca Ioana Avram smiling while she is in the kitchen preparing a dish.](https://dotorg.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/2d4ced6/2147483647/strip/true/crop/400x400+0+0/resize/240x240!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fsoi-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fdotorg%2Fae%2F6f%2Fdd25ea0c42aa8667cabb8a7810e6%2F400x400-raluca-ioana-avram.jpg)
Raluca Ioana Avram, or Ralu, entered the Special Olympics family in 2011. She participated at the Special Olympics Romania National Games in Bucharest and has not stopped since. In 2013 she was chosen to participate at the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Korea, which made her very happy. Ralu also went to Lithuania and to Austria to participate in the Special Olympics Europe Eurasia Athlete Leader Health and Fitness workshops.
Raluca became a Health Messenger because of her passion to compete and to eat healthy. As a Health Messenger she decided that it is important to live an authentic, healthy lifestyle to be a good role model to her fellow athletes.
In order to stay healthy, Raluca advises others to eat fresh, nutritious food and well-washed vegetables and fruits. Raluca likes to make her own tasty, colorful, fresh salads.
Her message to health care providers and people working in the health sector is that a disability might be a state of a person with some limitations, but nevertheless everybody must be understood and accepted equally.
In her everyday life, Raluca works at a supermarket and she loves dancing, painting, cooking and taking ballet lessons.
Health Messengers
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Raluca Ioana Avram
Romania -
Gilmour Borg
Malta -
Kiera Byland
Great Britain -
Kayla Cornell
Michigan, USA -
Beth Donahue
Massachusetts, USA -
Vince Egan
Colorado, USA -
Maryann Gonzalez
Florida, USA -
Adam Hammer
Hungary -
Stephanie Handojo
To Stephanie, the athlete oath isn't just a saying. It's a valuable tool for overcoming her greatest fears. Being involved in Special Olympics has given Stephanie the confidence she needs to celebrate her abilities and pursue her dreams. As a Sargent Shriver International Global Messenger and a Health Messenger, she wants to promote health and educate young athletes. -
Lynna Marie Hodgson
Missouri, USA -
Kisha Morgan
Mississippi, USA -
Darci Owens
Alaska, USA -
Jasmine Sharif
Pakistan -
Kurtis Siu
Hong Kong -
Yi-Hsuan Tseng
Chinese Taipei -
Lize Weerdenburg
Netherlands -
Su Xing “Jack” Zheng
China