Member Spotlight: Special Olympics Ohio

Member Spotlight by Christine Hoyer, Chief Development Officer

Provide us with a brief summary of your business’ services.
Special Olympics Ohio provides the transformative power of sports to instill confidence, improve health, and inspire a sense of competition for 20,000 youth and adult athletes with intellectual disabilities in all 88 counties throughout Ohio. By providing year-round sports training and competition, we offer everyone the opportunity to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy, and participate in a community where they belong. In addition to sports training and competition, Special Olympics Ohio provides free health screenings, leadership training, in-school programming, and more.

Tell us about your company’s mission and values.
The mission of Special Olympics Ohio is to advance the global inclusion movement through sports, health education, and leadership programs that empower people with intellectual disabilities throughout Ohio. Special Olympics Ohio encompasses the power and joy of sport to provide opportunities for athletes to connect with and contribute to their communities. This sense of connectedness allows us to focus on the athletes’ talents and applaud their ability in competition of 18 different Olympic-style sports—from gymnastics, to soccer, to equestrian, and more. Special Olympics Ohio demonstrates that ability can unite us all.

What are the services you use the most (or are looking forward to using) from the Columbus Chamber?
We are looking forward to utilizing Columbus Chamber’s marketing services to help spread awareness for the inclusion movement taking place at Special Olympics Ohio’s community-based events and partnership opportunities. We’re also excited to be a part of this dynamic network and want to learn from and collaborate with other organizations and businesses.

Please describe your company culture.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are our founding principles, as we work towards a more inclusive world where everyone belongs.

What makes Columbus such a great place to do business?
Everyone talks about Columbus’s centralized location and how it serves as a unique hub for many businesses, which is very true. However, beyond that, we believe that our connection to community is what truly makes Columbus special as there is an abundance of organizations who provide essential services, financial resources, and more for community members. Special Olympics Ohio is proud to call Columbus home because of the strength, resiliency, and willingness of our community to give back and support one another. And we look forward to the opportunity of developing partnerships with even more area businesses.

Social Media
Twitter: twitter.com/SOOhio
Facebook: facebook.com/SpecialOlympicsOhio/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/specialolympicsohio
Instagram: instagram.com/specialolympicsoh/
Website: sooh.org