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With Special Olympics underway, L.A. Jews rally behind Israel

Stevie Wonder performed a song, late-night TV host Jimmy Kimmel told jokes and First Lady Michelle Obama gave a passionate and inspiring speech.
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July 29, 2015

Stevie Wonder performed a song, late-night TV host Jimmy Kimmel told jokes and First Lady Michelle Obama gave a passionate and inspiring speech. But on the evening of July 25, the A-list celebrities gladly ceded the spotlight to thousands of athletes with intellectual disabilities from around the world.

Paula Abdul walked out with the Israeli team during the opening ceremony. Photo by Steve Teitelbaum

It was the opening ceremony for the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, where a sizeable Jewish and Israeli presence was felt despite the event’s intersection with Shabbat. Volunteers, host families, parents and supporters waved flags, clapped and cheered on Israel’s 40-athlete delegation, which competes in eight different events including basketball, bowling and tennis.  

As the athletes walked onto the field, cameras flashed and the crowd roared. Each athlete’s smile was bigger than the next, and the sheer joy of the participants was reflected in the stands. After the torch was finally lit and the ceremony was capped with a fireworks spectacle, the delegations lingered in the stadium, hugging each other and beaming with the energy of an unforgettable night. 

Priscilla Picard was a volunteer in the center of the stadium during the ceremony. Working as a guest host and escort for Loretta Claiborne, a former Special Olympics champion in bowling and track and field and a current member of the Special Olympics international board of directors, she was in charge of directing VIPs to their seats. She said seeing all the athletes’ faces light up was an incredible experience. 

“It was really exciting,” Picard said. “It was so rewarding to see the teams dancing and singing and clapping. The energy was just amazing.”

Picard, who also serves on the board of directors for the Southern California branch of Autism Speaks, started volunteering with Special Olympics when her son, Zach, who has autism, started participating in the games. She has personal experience with the Jewish community’s capacity for hospitality through her son’s involvement with youth programs at Valley Beth Shalom in Encino, and she said she expects that support will extend to attending World Games competitions. 

“It’s important for people to see that these athletes can do so much and see how courageous they are in everything they do,” she said. “They’re here, jetlagged, competing in a foreign country, with a different language in some cases, and we want people to see their courage and accept them.”

Yaara Segal attended the ceremony, donning a Special Olympics Israel baseball cap with several small Israeli flags stuffed in the back through her ponytail. She cheered loudly as the Israeli delegation was announced during the parade of nations. 

A public diplomacy officer for the Consulate General of Israel, she said the opening ceremony was a great moment for her, both personally and professionally. 

“I’m here to be excited with the team and everyone else and to see the things we have been working toward for the past few years come to life,” she said. “The Israeli community is very excited.

As an Israeli who lives in L.A., Segal said she knows the culture shock can be jarring, and she understands just how important it is to welcome the Israeli delegation with open arms.

“This is such special event, and I think it’s really important for our team to see they have a lot of support even when they are away from home,” she said. “They need to feel the home away from home. Everybody needs support and we try to give as much as we can.”

One such local effort came from Jamie and Chuck Meyer, who hosted a welcoming party on July 22 for the Israeli delegation at their home in Bel Air. Roughly 250 guests spent the afternoon in the Meyers’ backyard, playing carnival games, eating pizza and meeting the athletes and staff from the Israeli delegation. 

A host of celebrities were present, including actor Tom Arnold and several former NBA players, including UCLA alum Baron Davis, Northridge natives Jason and Jarron Collins and UCLA basketball national champion Michael Warren. Bobby Shriver, brother of Special Olympics Chairman Timothy Shriver and son of Special Olympics founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver, also was in attendance. 

Israeli Special Olympian Lin Kornhauser, 27, gets ready to bowl on July 27. Photo by Nancy Strogoff

Barry and Marlene Horowitz, who attended the opening ceremony in matching Special Olympics T-shirts, decided to support the Israeli athletes by offering their home to the patrents of one of the Israeli athletes, 19-year-old Noa Attali. This is their first involvement with the Special Olympics community — they decided to help after receiving a phone call from a friend looking for people to help host families. The couple attended the opening ceremony in the spirit of fully committing to the mitzvah. 

“We decided rather than doing the minimum, which is just to host them, we decided we wanted to come as well,” Barry said. “We will probably go to one or two days of events and also give them a tour of L.A.”

“It’s very meaningful to show them the strength of Jewish Los Angeles,” Marlene added. “That is important to us.”

Marlene said she felt particularly inspired to volunteer with Special Olympics because she has seen the work of her friends who work in special education. 

“They do so many amazing things, and they raise those kids’ expectations to the highest, and those kids accomplish so much,” she said. “It’s very beautiful.” 

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