The November 7th Villanovan had a full page feature on the Special Olympics Fall Festival. The largest student-run Special Olympics in the United States deserved as much. However, the uninformed author of the article gave readers the impression that the 72 student committee simply spooned out eggs to the 1400 athletes and coaches who were present. The author’s admirable detective work uncovered the origin of the cookies and pizza (Hope’s and Peace-a-Pizza respectively.)I, myself, handed the Villanovan, upon request, a copy of the 42 page Coaches Handbook detailing the entire weekend and Special Olympics program. Under no circumstances should this author have been uninformed. This committee of students, representing a cross-section of Villanova, has worked for over eleven months to put together a remarkable weekend that leaves a mark on the lives of the athletes, coaches and volunteers. They plan the entire festival, from the referees, the venues, the hotels, the credentials, all the way down to the lines on the field. Their planning is comprehensive and complete. Responsible directly for the work of ten of the committee members, I find it disheartening that their work has been interpretted as helping Dining Services over the weekend. If the Villanovan wanted to know about Special Olympics, they should have walked down the hall and asked…we’re right next door.

Thank you to the 2000 student volunteers who came out and helped!Scott DonnellyManagement Team; Special Olympics Villanova