Just\u00a0hours into their first time volunteering at the\u00a0Special Olympics\u2019\u00a02026\u00a0Pennsylvania Summer Games\u00a0from June 4-6\u00a0in State College, East Stroudsburg University athletic training graduate students Olympia Curley-Katrishen and Cameron Nunez\u00a0had\u00a0already\u00a0seen enough\u00a0to know\u00a0they\u2019d\u00a0be back.<\/p>\n
More than\u00a0just the\u00a0promise of\u00a0career experience,\u00a0another benefit\u00a0quickly\u00a0stood out:\u00a0the athletes\u2019\u00a0courage\u00a0over adversity, support for one another, and gratitude towards their volunteers\u00a0were proof\u00a0Curley-Katrishen\u00a0and Nunez\u00a0had found a cause they\u00a0would want\u00a0to\u00a0be part of again and again.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m already signed up for next year,\u201d Curley-Katrishen\u00a0said. \u201cI knew right away I needed to come back because the athletes were so happy to be there, they were so happy we were there, and they were the sweetest people I\u2019ve ever met.\u201d<\/p>\n
Already on board for next year\u2019s games as well, Nunez\u00a0also knew\u00a0right away that\u00a0she was part of something\u00a0uniquely rewarding.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was one of the most amazing experiences ever,\u201d\u00a0Nunez\u00a0said.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0Summer Games is Special\u00a0Olympics\u00a0Pennsylvania\u2019s largest statewide competition.\u00a0Held at Penn State University,\u00a0it\u00a0featured\u00a0nearly 2,000\u00a0athletes who competed in\u00a0athletics,\u00a0basketball, gymnastics,\u00a0swimming\u00a0and\u00a0tennis\u00a0over the course of three days. Curley-Katrishen\u00a0and Nunez were among over 1,100 volunteers.<\/p>\n
Though they were\u00a0first-time volunteers\u00a0at the\u00a0large-scale\u00a0event,\u00a0Curley-Katrishen\u00a0and Nunez\u00a0had an experienced mentor they could\u00a0rely on.<\/p>\n
Dr.\u00a0Jayme\u202fGaldieri,\u00a0MS, LAT, ATC,\u00a0an athletic trainer in\u00a0ESU\u2019s\u00a0department of intercollegiate athletics, has been\u00a0involved in the Special Olympics Pennsylvania Summer Games\u00a0since\u00a02002.\u00a0An\u00a0athletic training student\u00a0at the time, his experience\u00a0at the Games\u00a0inspired him to\u00a0continue volunteering\u00a0once he graduated and became\u00a0a\u00a0licensed athletic trainer.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s such a wholesome event,\u201d Dr. Galdieri said. \u201cThere\u2019s\u00a0always smiles. There are never many hard feelings when it comes to winning or losing. The athletes are just there to compete and support each other in a positive way.\u201d<\/p>\n
In\u00a02012,\u00a0Dr. Galdieri\u00a0became\u00a0the Special Olympics Pennsylvania Summer Games\u2019\u00a0medical care coordinator. Today,\u00a0he\u00a0serves as the\u00a0Games\u2019 lead athletic trainer with recruitment as one of his main responsibilities, he said.<\/p>\n
Knowing the impact the Special Olympics\u00a0has\u00a0had on him, Dr.\u00a0Galdieri\u00a0suggested Curley-Katrishen\u00a0and Nunez volunteer, as he encourages many of his graduate assistants to do.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor\u00a0students like\u00a0Cameron and Olympia, they might go on to work in a setting where they\u2019re working independently, so they\u2019re going to need to be able to handle any kind of situation that comes along,\u201d he said. \u201cAt an event like the\u00a0Summer Games, they\u2019ll be around other trainers and physicians who have seen a lot that they can absorb and carry with them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr.\u00a0Galdieri was\u00a0working out of the\u00a0Special Olympics Pennsylvania Summer Games\u2019 central\u00a0operations\u00a0center while Curley-Katrishen\u00a0and Nunez were\u00a0working at\u00a0the events. Though he was available anytime for questions or advice, Curley-Katrishen\u00a0and Nunez rarely needed it, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re strong individuals in terms of their knowledge base,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Dr. Galdieri credited the athletic training program\u2019s curriculum for not only the students\u2019 preparation, but also their willingness to dedicate their time to a cause like the Special Olympics.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt speaks volumes that ESU promotes a positive environment for the students so that when they become actual athletic trainers, they want to give back by doing things like this,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
As former ESU student-athletes, Curley-Katrishen\u00a0and Nunez know what it means to compete at\u00a0a high level. Nunez was a member of ESU\u2019s Women\u2019s Wrestling\u00a0team\u00a0and Curley-Katrishen\u00a0ran Women\u2019s Cross Country\u00a0while undergraduate students at the University.<\/p>\n
Moreover, as graduate assistants, they\u00a0work closely with\u00a0ESU\u2019s current\u00a0student-athletes\u00a0throughout the year.<\/p>\n
However, both students said working with Special Olympics athletes\u00a0allowed them to see athletics and athletic training from a new, refreshing\u00a0perspective.\u00a0Whether volunteers were taping ankles, treating\u00a0bruises\u00a0or just showing their support, the athletes responded with gratitude.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were so appreciative of the small things we did for them and so grateful for us being there to volunteer, that it really showed how\u00a0much it means to them to be able to have this opportunity to compete,\u201d Nunez said.<\/p>\n
Curley-Katrishen\u00a0saw that sentiment firsthand when\u00a0she treated\u00a0an athlete\u00a0after a hard fall during basketball, only for the athlete to run right back to his teammates.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was so excited to be\u00a0there\u00a0he just thanked me and said he needed to get back to supporting his team,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
With\u00a0high temperatures\u00a0to contend\u00a0with\u00a0during the Games, making sure athletes were properly hydrated was a major focus.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany of the athletes go off some of their medications to compete, which makes them even more susceptible to heat illness, strokes or seizures,\u201d Curley-Katrishen\u00a0said. \u201cWe made sure to keep them hydrated and if they were competing outdoors, get them right into the shade after competing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both students said they returned home from the\u00a0Games\u00a0with more experience and perspective than they\u00a0anticipated, and\u00a0are eager to do it all over again.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t wait to go back next year,\u201d Nunez said.<\/p>\n
While Curley-Katrishen\u00a0and Nunez are finished with the Special Olympics for the summer,\u00a0Dr. Galdieri\u2019s work\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0done.<\/p>\n
From June 20-26,\u00a0he\u00a0will\u00a0serve as\u00a0an athletic trainer for Team Pennsylvania for the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games\u00a0in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a role he also\u00a0held for\u00a0the 2022 Games in Orlando, Florida.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0USA Games\u00a0will feature 3,000 athletes, 1,500\u00a0coaches\u00a0and 10,000 volunteers. Dr. Galdieri will work with Team Pennsylvania\u2019s\u00a091 athletes\u00a0who\u00a0will be competing in 11 of the Games’ 16 sports.<\/p>\n
His\u00a0work began when he was appointed to the position in spring 2025. He has reviewed medical paperwork for all the competitors, helped the Special Olympics PA leadership team with planning, and attended a training camp to prepare members of Team PA that will be traveling to the USA Games.<\/p>\n
Once the team arrives in Minneapolis, he will work with on-site medical staff at each venue to provide care for members of the team, and act as the liaison between the on-site medical staff, athletes, and coaches.<\/p>\n
“This is an underserved population, and these athletes can sustain the same injuries as traditional athletes. Athletic trainers provide care for the active population, and Special Olympics athletes are no exception,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
After 20 years,\u00a0Dr.\u00a0Galdieri continues to be excited about volunteering with the Pennsylvania Special Olympics\u00a0and serving its athletes.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the best thing I do with my life,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n