Raising the roof for Special Olympics

Motorists in Jasper and Ferdinand may have noted local police officers waving them down from the rooftops of the local Dunkin’ locations today.

No traffic tickets were involved, just friendly waves of invitation to stop in and support the Special Olympics of Indiana as part of a national fundraiser that Dunkin’ hosts annually through partnerships with local police agencies.

Rose Terwiske, the fundraising and public relations coordinator for Special Olympics in Dubois County, emphasized just how critical events like this are to keeping the program running. The organization must raise between $15,000 and $20,000 each year to cover athletes’ competition fees, uniforms, equipment, and travel — because athletes are never charged for anything.

“The athletes pay for nothing,” Terwiske said — a motto that makes community fundraising efforts like Cops on a Rooftop essential to the program’s success.

Local Special Olympics athletes joined the officers at the two locations.

Special Olympics Athlete Leadership Council Chairman Adam Schwartz, a 22-year veteran of the program, was on hand to help rally support. Schwartz is also pursuing a coaching certification through Butler University, a program that Special Olympics fully funds.

He explained that he appreciated what Dunkin’ was doing to help fund the Special Olympics, and he had enjoyed hanging out with the police officers while meeting the kind people who came to the store.

He explained that the event was also great for raising awareness of Special Olympics in Dubois County, which Terwiske said was expanding from a seasonal to a year-round program.

“We’re looking for more athletes to contend,” Schwartz said. “(There’s) a lot of great people around. You make lots of friends.”

You can find out more about Special Olympics in Dubois County at their Facebook page here.