Celebrate Unity and Inclusion Through Sport and Community.

Sports have the remarkable ability to connect people in ways few other things can, and I've seen it firsthand. From the camaraderie in a baseball locker room to the shared thrill of a last-minute goal, there's an undeniable magic in how sports bring us together. I often find myself recalling my own experiences on the field, where backgrounds and beliefs blur into shared purpose and mutual respect. It's not just about the game; it's about the connections and life lessons that come along with it.

This episode highlights the incredible journey of Jamie from St. Kitts and Nevis, whose passion for soccer led to the creation of the Unified Football Program. By uniting children with intellectual disabilities with their peers, Jamie has sparked friendships and shattered stigmas, showcasing the true power of sports to transform lives and bridge divides. Listen as we celebrate Jamie's inspiring work and explore how sports can be a force for good, fostering community and unity worldwide.

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Transcript

00:04 - Steve Sax (Host)
Your daily game plan for success. It's Sax in the Morning, Steve Sax. Hi, Steve Sax, here with Sax in the Morning. This is your weekly dose of motivation, inspirational stories and tips for personal empowerment. 

00:21
Today, I wanted to talk about the power of connectivity that sports can bring us. Sometimes I meet people who don't really care about sports or who really have never participated playing on a team, and, I'll be honest, I feel a little sorry for them, because sports can bring so much to our lives. Even just being a fan bonds you with other people in a special way. So I love sports, and baseball, obviously, in particular. That's given me so much in my life, and there's millions of reasons to love sports. Yeah, I love the competitiveness, I love watching the perseverance of the athletes and the skill and talent, but it's that connectivity of sports that I find so amazing, because in a locker room, for instance, you have to all work together, no matter what your backgrounds are or what your outside opinions may be. Playing sports and being a fan of sports connects you to people that you may never otherwise have been connected to, and let me tell you this too I played 17 and a half years of any type of racism, any type of evil backbiting, any slander campaigns, whispering campaigns. It never happened, and let me tell you all the guys that I played with they say the same things on their respective teams. It never happened. That's really the power of sports, if you ask me, and that's why I wanted to highlight today's story about a young man named Jamie. 

01:48
Now, Jamie starred as a Special Olympics St Kitts and Nevis athlete on their travel soccer team. For those of you who don't know, the Special Olympics was established in 1968, and it's a global organization that provides kids and adult athletes with intellectual disabilities training in athletic competition in a variety of sports. They have been doing this for almost 60 years now because they know the power of sports and how it can enrich people's lives. Jamie's a representative of the Special Olympics Caribbean Athlete Leadership Council and he works as a mechanic for the St Christopher Air and Seaport Authority. He's had such a passion for soccer and belief in the power of sports to build confidence and friendship for children that he decided to start a program in his hometown which would bring kids together that have intellectual disabilities with other kids to play soccer together. So he brought together all these kids from his alma mater, cotton Thomas Comprehensive School which serves children with intellectual disabilities and children from the local primary school, for a six-week soccer training program, and he called it the Unified Football Program. You see, over there they call football soccer, okay, and they don't have football over there like we do, but they just call it football. Okay, we'll let them have that. They don't have football over there like we do, but they just call it football. Okay, we'll let them have that. 

03:09
So Jamie's hope was that bringing these kids together would help break down some of the stigma attached to kids enrolled at special education schools and encourage them to develop bonds through their common interest in soccer. They practiced and trained together twice a week with Jamie as their coach, building those relationships and friendships. And, just as he predicted, the love of sport left these kids eager to continue playing together way after the six-week program ended. The success of his pilot project has led the Special Olympics and the leader of his country to sponsor the start of the Unified Champion Schools Program, which will expand the Unified Football program in more schools across the country. Jamie hopes that the program will not only break down barriers and stigma, but helps kids of all abilities to get more involved in their community teams, and he believes that this pilot program shows how a common love of sports can bring those people together. So this story really highlights why I believe sports are so powerful in our lives, because they just aren't silly games. They can bring us together when we might otherwise find ways to allow our differences to tear us apart. 

04:15
And that is my short for today. Give us a positive review, subscribe and share. Also, remember that the Sax in the Morning swag is now available on my Instagram site. Go to saxinthemorning underscore podcast. You'll see it right there on the Instagram and just hit the link. Everything's there Mugs, hats, tumblers, you name it. You.