Team Heroes Sports Fun Day Honors Children With Autism This Weekend

This weekend, while most of us are perusing the "Events" section of our local newspaper, trying to figure out something to do, there will be a small group of children who will be awarded sports honors, for a job well done. While most of us can say that we have "been there, done that", this is an awards ceremony that is like no other.

The children who are being awarded for their efforts suffer with autism.

Back in 2009, Ellen Thalhamer III, a special education teacher with a mission, began the sports camp that is now Team Heroes Sports, a nonprofit organization that is based out of West Islip, but the camp itself is held on Saturday mornings from 9 to 12 on a field in Half Hollow Hills that was generously donated by the school district. Ellen, along with her sister Tracy, and their friends, Joan Childs and Jessica Davis, put their heads together to find a way for children with autism to participate in organized sports, but with a twist. Because Ellen felt for these children, she wished to assist them, in a judgment free zone, to learn a sport, and to feel like heroes at the end of their nine week program. And so, in 2009, with only 14 children, Team Heroes Sports was born.

Team Heroes Sports is run by special education teachers, as well as by a group of incredibly dedicated volunteers who truly love what they do. The camp itself runs for 18 weeks; the first nine weeks of the camp consist of soccer instruction and turn taking. The second nine weeks are dedicated to learning the sport of t-ball. The camp, which costs $35 per nine week period, is run in an ABA-type format, which means that skills are broken down to their most basic levels, and that children are rewarded for positive behaviors with praise and reinforcement, and then begin using those skills in a generalized format in a natural setting. The most priceless part of this camp is the sheer joy that literally radiates from the faces of both parents and children alike; here are children, who would perhaps be forgotten in the mainstream sporting world, competing and learning and actually enjoying what they are doing. And the volunteers? Well, let's just say that on some days, the sun cannot even shine brighter than the satisfactory glow that appears on each and every face of these volunteers. My seventeen year old daughter is one of those volunteers, and when I tell you what I see on her face, well, as anyone who has experienced the teenaged years knows, this is not an easy task to accomplish.

Ellen was recently written up in the Long Island Press by Beverly Fortune, and was recognized for her efforts with Team Heroes Sports by Fortune 52 on March 12, 2012, but she prefers to remain in the background. Ever humble, she always states that it is the children, their parents, and the volunteers of this camp that make this organization the success that it is today. As she so modestly has been known to state on many occasions, she would like to "thank the parents for their dedication and love for their children. Their children are so beautiful, and the progress they make during camp makes all the difference." As for the children, Ellen lovingly tells each and every child, "Thank you all for your happy, loving personas, beautiful hearts and glowing smiles." Volunteers make a world of difference as well to Ellen and her staff, wihch are too many to mention in this article, but Ellen has stated, "Team Heroes would never be what it is without the dedication of our volunteers and all the parents who are present."

Fundraisers are held throughout the year, but the camp, which runs from March through the end of July, is the most enjoyable part of Ellen's time with Team Heroes. This Saturday marks the final meeting for the year for Team Heroes Sports, and it will be fittingly named, "Fun Day". There will be an awards ceremony, where each child will receive a trophy. There will also be games, booths for prizes, and picture time for the children and their families. Volunteers will be on board at 8 am to begin the process of setting up; the camp will open at 10 am. A cake has been generously donated by Jean Schapowal of "Cakes With Character" in Hicksville, which will bear the Team Heroes logo. There have been other donations by other generous members of the community for this fabulous event.

Ellen's dream for children with autism to be involved in a sport has grown, from a small idea in the back of her mind, to a wonderful reality. Her dream has been conceived of the heart, blessed by like-minded individuals with a committment and dedication to caring, and has great promise for the future for children with autism. Team Heroes has evolved into an impressive, lovingly dedicated program to help children with autism, as well as their parents, to become a part of something bigger than themselves. The joy that comes from this program is in itself its own reward. Like the verse by Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken", Ellen Thalhamer has had the courage to take the road less traveled by,and that has made all the difference.

I know what I'm doing this weekend. I'm going to watch a miracle unfold.

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To contact Ellen, or to find out more about Team Heroes Sports, volunteering, or autism, please go to www.teamheroessports.com. The site is a wealth of information. Donations are gratefully accepted, and can be made on the website to benefit the children of Team Heroes, Inc.