Most of us, when we think of law officers, think of their need to be tough to catch the bad guys, to keep a watch out so we are safe, and to make sure that anyone who breaks the law is off the streets.
But our Special Olympics athletes think of Sheriff Dave Reynolds’ officers as caring friends. For the past five years, officers from the Porter County Sheriff’s Department — including the sheriff — have been a big part of Special Olympics Indiana’s “Tip a Cop” fundraiser, which is held at Red Robin.
These volunteer men and women spend a Saturday assisting the servers with the customers, with several of our athletes helping too. They are great at filling water glasses, or removing dishes from the table. From morning to night, they are there with smiles and having fun with the athletes, staff and customers. The special envelope given to each diner is his/her gift to Special Olympics because of the great assistance from the officers to make their mealtime so lovely. The athletes are so enamored of being able to be there with the men and women they look up to, that they stay the entire day.
And because the officers are so outstanding in there new work, this is the second year in a row that the Porter County Sheriff’s Department raised more dollars in tips than any other “Tip a Cop” group in the state. It was a goal of Sheriff Dave for them to beat last year’s tips, and he wasn’t disappointed. If any of you dined at Red Robin that day, you are part of that goal for tipping a cop for our athletes. A very big thank you to the entire staff of the sheriff’s department for making our athletes feel so important and helping keep their programs going.
There are lots of people in my life who I admire, and have on my mental pedestal, and often times they prove me right by going above and beyond.
Two of those super people are Amy Socha and Kathy Levandowski.
Amy is a senior at Chesterton High School, and one of my favorite Special Olympics volunteers, having been a wonderful addition to our swim program with her expertise. Amy was recently named the Chesterton Rotary Student of the Month, which is probably only one of the accolades this very special young lady will receive before she graduates in June. She is a math whiz, and ranks among the top math students in the entire country. She is also a two-sport athlete, participating in swimming and track, as well as a member of the Honor Society. She has outstanding academic attributes, but, to me, even that is overshadowed by her overwhelming community service, which includes Porter County Special Olympics.
For the past four years, Amy has been an assistant coach for our swimmers, and Sunday afternoons were her commitment to them. She has also recruited other Chesterton swimmers to join her in helping our athletes, and it has become a love affair. I can’t imagine what it will be like next year when she is no longer there, but feel very blessed that she chose to serve our swimmers.
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Amy actually reminds me of a young Kathy Levandowski. Kathy has been a part of my list ever since she was in high school when I was her basketball coach. It was obvious to me that she had that extra something that had her always giving her all to whatever she was involved in. Besides her superb athletic ability, she had a will to help others and — after being a volunteer for Special Olympics — chose to become a special education teacher. Add to that, with her continued love of sports, she became a sports trainer too.
She is nothing less than a dynamo with time for both her special need students and the Valparaiso High School athletes. She’s like the energizer bunny just going and going, and always with a happy, positive outlook. Any student who seeks her help gets 100 percent of her attention. I can’t think of any other trainer or teacher more worthy of the Indiana Athletic Trainers Association Hall of Fame than this whirlwind.
Amy and Kathy, congratulations — I am honored to have you in my life, and of course, you are my pet persons of the week.
God’s blessings always, and thanks. Now I hope you all have a great day because you deserve it. Thanks for reading. Fly your flag.
Lorrie Woycik is a freelance columnist for the Post-Tribune.