Sports Association Newsletter
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The Sports Association is dedicated to improving the lives of persons with physical disabilities through adaptive sports and recreation.
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Dear Friends of the Sports Association,
Welcome to Fall! This newsletter is jam packed with news on our summer events as well as our upcoming Fall schedule.
We have had a busy summer! We brought back our Adaptive Waterski Clinics as well as the Ken Murphy Memorial Open Golf Tournament. We held numerous adaptive cycle rides on the Cheshire Linear Trail and we had a great group of pickleball and tennis players who came out to play with us on the courts! In September, the Paratriahtlon Team competed in the Madison Triathlon, and we held the Veterans Fishing Tournament at Congomond Lake in Southwick, MA. Most recently, we held the inaugural Gaylord Bullseye Classic Archery Tournament! We enjoyed seeing so many familiar faces and welcoming new athletes at these programs!
Our Fall schedule has been announced and next week we are starting virtual adaptive boxing, seated yoga classes and Boccia open play sessions! We have our monthly archery and golf clinics scheduled as well as a kayak class in November. Both the Gaylord Wolfpack Sled Hockey Team and the Gaylord Jammers Wheelchair Rugby Teams have started up practices for the season. And don't miss our home sled hockey games this weekend, Sunday October 23 in Cromwell at Champions Skating Center!
We hope to see you at an upcoming program! For any questions or to register, give us a call at 203-284-2772.
All the best,
The Gaylord Sports Association |
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Veterans Fishing Tournament |
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The Veterans Fishing Tournament was held on Sept. 20 at Congamond Lake in Southwick, MA. The event was a success with 25 veterans in attendance! Volunteer boat captains were each paired with a veteran and they enjoyed a day on the water fishing followed by a weigh-in and an awards luncheon. Congratulations to veteran Urbano Bondoc and boat captain, Jim Morris, with a first place finish. We celebrated our 10th year offering these tournaments and recognized Joe Kowalski of Maj. Steven Roy Andrews Fishing Outreach Program and Al Guite of CT BASS Nation for their dedication and service! Also, a big thank you to our program sponsor, Move United & the VA Adaptive Sports Grant who have supported this event since 2018! Photos from the event can be viewed in our Facebook Album. |
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In August, the Gaylord Sports Association hosted a Sled Hockey Clinic at Northford Ice Pavilion. Participants learned about the sport from players and coaches and had the opportunity to get on the ice and learn some sled hockey skills. Practices are held at Westminster School in Simsbury and Northford Ice Pavilion. We are still recruting players; let us know if you are interested! |
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Sled Hockey Home Games this Sunday! |
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Our home Sled Hockey games are being held this weekend on Sunday, October 23 in Cromwell at Champions Skating Center! We are welcoming the NE Warriors, the Boston ICE Storm, Central VT Pioneers, Spaulding Shamrocks and the NEP Wildcats! The Gaylord Wolfpack Play at 8:30 AM vs. the NE Warriors and at 4:00 PM vs. the NEP Wildcats. Come cheer on the Gaylord Wolfpack! No admission fee and public welcome! Please visit www.NESHL.org for the full game schedule. |
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Ken Murphy Memorial Open Golf Tournament |
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After a 2-year hiatus due to COVID, the Sports Association was excited to welcome twenty adaptive golfers to the Farms Country Club for the Ken Murphy Memorial Open Golf Tournament (KMMO) in August. We were joined by Jim Altman from Fox 61 who put together an incredible news story on this event! Check it out HERE. Congratulations to tournament winners Todd Blosser and Tim Ploszaj! We would like to thank the Farms Country Club for their hospitality and look forward to next year's tournament. |
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The annual “For the Love of the Game” Award was presented to Allen Steiger during the KMMO luncheon. Al has been a volunteer with the Sports Association for over 10 years, starting off as a wheelchair rugby coach in 2011 and then as an adaptive golf coach since 2016. He is a natural at coaching and loves to find creative solutions to help people maximize their independence. Al is an integral part of our program and we love his passion for helping others! This award was created in 2007 to honor long-time golf member Paul Hickey and is presented annually to “an individual who exemplifies a tireless passion for the sport of golf.” |
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Waterski Clinics in the News! |
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Our Adaptive Waterski Clinics returned this summer at Pachaug Pond in Griswold and were featured in the N ew London Day! Check out the news story HERE and event photos HERE. Thank you to all the volunteers who were there to make it possible as well as support from Move United and the VA Adaptive Sports Grant! |
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Dave Parcells Madison Triathlon |
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Congratulations to all the competitors in the Dave Parcells Madison Triathlon on September 20th! We had 13 competitors who either completed the full course or competed as part of a relay team. This was the biggest group of paratriathlon athletes in the program's history. Thank you to our coach, Doug Levens, our volunteer guides and all the athletes for a successful season! We also thank the USA Triathlon Foundation for their ongoing support of this program! We are already looking forward to next year! |
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Gaylord Bullseye Classic Archery Tournament
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The inaugural Gaylord Bullseye Classic was held on October 11th on the Gaylord South Lawn and was a huge success! Archers competed in an individual scoring round for a total of 30 arrows at a distance of 18 meters from the shooting line. This tournament was based on USA Archery Para Competition rules and all archers shot independently with modifications if needed. Congratulations to first place Frank Padro with a score of 230, followed by Cameron Senna and Edwin Quinones. We plan to make this an annual event and hope to have even more competitors next year! |
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Gaylord Jammers Wheelchair Rugby
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The Gaylord Jammers Wheelchair Rugby Team practices have started with coach Dominic Colavito! Practices are held at Wallingford Park and Recreation on Sundays. The team is recruiting new players, please contact us if you are interested! |
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Announcing our Fall Calendar! Below are all of our upcoming Fall program dates. Program information can also be found on our website calendar at www.gaylord.org/sports and on our Facebook Events! |
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Archery Clinics
Tuesdays: Nov. 8 & Dec. 6
2:00 PM - 3:00 PM or 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Roncari Hall at Gaylord
Golf Clinics
Tuesdays: Oct. 18, Nov. 15 & Dec. 13
2:00 PM - 3:00 PM or 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Roncari Hall at Gaylord
Boccia Open Play
Tuesdays: Oct. 25, Nov. 22 & Dec. 20
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Roncari Hall at Gaylord
Adaptive Boxing
8-Week Series on Wednesdays with Pierre Fallot
Oct. 26 - Dec. 14
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Virtual via ZOOM
Seated Yoga
Mindful Resilience Yoga with Rebecca Smith
Thursdays: Oct. 27, Nov. 17 & Dec. 15
6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Roncari Hall at Gaylord or virtual via ZOOM
Kayak Class
Friday, November 4
3:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Gaylord Pool
Ski and Snowboard Discovery Night
Thursday, December 8
6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
Roncari Hall at Gaylord
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Pre-registration is required for all programs. Please contact us with questions or to register by emailing sports@gaylord.org or by calling 203-284-2772. To maintain as safe an environment as possible, COVID-19 protocols will be used for all attendees, staff and volunteers. Surgical style face masks are required if in the hospital. Clinics will have a maximum number of participants per session. Some programs have essential eligibility requirements for safety. Cost is FREE unless otherwise noted. |
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The Gaylord Sports Association is dedicated to improving the lives of persons with physical disabilities through adaptive sports and recreation. We are a program of Gaylord Specialty Healthcare, located in Wallingford, CT. We are a proud chapter member of Move United. We serve adults ages 16 and up with physical disability or visual impairment and welcome new members to join us. For more information, please visit our webpage, call us at 203-284-2772 or email sports@gaylord.org. |
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