On a sun-splashed and crisp Thursday afternoon, student athletes, volunteers, and members of the Best Buddies Club at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School, as well as a few athletes from West Tisbury School, made a triumphant return to the Island in Vineyard Haven.
The Island’s emergency personnel were on hand to make sure those who went off-Island to the Special Olympics Day Games at Monomoy High School in Harwich were welcomed back to the Vineyard in style — sirens blaring, applause, and smiles all around as they walked off the freight deck of the MV Nantucket.
Ryan Kent, United Athletics coach at MVRHS, told The Times it was a great day for the 30 individuals who traveled to the games.
Through Kent, senior Alyssa Sylvia described the day as, “Totally amazing. I had so much fun. It was great to see another school, and play with our friends.”
When Kent asked Julie Barbosa what her favorite part of the day was, she said, “I loved the races.”
This is the first time the event was held on the regional level with schools from throughout the area participating since 2019, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Personally, I was elated to have things back to normal and have the Cape and Islands Special Olympics community back together on a large scale,” Kent said.