Spirit of Special Olympics Indiana: 2018 Volunteer of the Year

Special Olympics Indiana is pleased to announce that Steve Bingelli, Sr., from Clark County, is our 2018 Spirit of Special Olympics Volunteer of the Year!

The Spirit of Special Olympics Indiana Awards are presented annually at our State Conference, recognizing the athletes, coaches, volunteers, families, and LETR officers who have gone above and beyond in their contributions and commitment to the Special Olympics movement over the course of the past year or more. Nominations for each category are submitted by our Area Management Teams before Area winners are selected, and from that list, Special Olympics Indiana’s Board of Directors chooses the state award winners each year.

Over the course of the past 28 years, Steve has been at the heart and soul of the Special Olympics movement in Clark County, often logging as many as 40 hours per week while serving in roles ranging from coach to chaperone to Area Competition Director to County Coordinator.

His leadership and hard work have made an impact on the lives of countless athletes and families over the years, as he’s played a vital role in building the local golf and flag football programs, developing a basketball skills program, and merging the Clark and Floyd County Programs when needed.

Golf is Steve’s love, and along with his son, Steven, he has competed on the national and world stage and won gold in Unified Golf multiple times. He has also served as a golf coach for Team Indiana, created a Unified Golf Tour stop at this local course, and has stayed involved in coaching golf skills to provide opportunities for as many athletes as possible to be introduced to the sport.

Steve is heavily involved in program development, administration, and fundraising, and his passion and deep commitment to Special Olympics is obvious to everyone he meets.

• He strives to lead his program with integrity, emphasizing the importance of training and certifications for all coaches and volunteers in an effort to ensure that his athletes enjoy safe, positive experiences through their involvement with Special Olympics.
• Despite overseeing a large program with over 200 active athletes, he attends nearly every practice and competition, making additional time to plan events and to coordinate outreach efforts in local schools.
• And as a member of the committee that organizes and plans the Borden Polar Plunge, Steve works tirelessly each winter to recruit sponsors, to coordinate with vendors, to set up for the event, and to personally raise thousands of dollars in support of our year-round programs.

For all these reasons and many more, we are proud to recognize Steve Bingelli, Sr. as our 2018 Spirit of Special Olympics Volunteer of the Year!