LIFESTYLE AUTHOR
Sam Hacker
SPECIAL OLYMPICS WITH MEAGAN FLYNN n Finding your place in the world can be difficult,
but for Meagan Flynn, the Special Olympics will always hold her heart.
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pecial Olympics has a place in many people’s hearts, regardless of what career they may have. Such is the case for Meagan Flynn; she works at Home Goods in Austin from Monday to Thursday, but her true passion is the Special Olympics. Flynn originally started Special Olympics when she was 8 years old after a P.E. teacher recommended it. “(I) just tried it, and it was a lot of fun,” Flynn says. “Ever since then, I’ve been hooked.” Special Olympics has become a space for not only athletes to feel at home but a place for employees to thrive. Chad Eason, the Sr. Director of Competition & Games, first got connected with Special Olympics while searching for an internship for a college capstone class.
MAY 2022
“My intern coordinator wasn’t working, so I went looking on my own,” Eason says. “Everything fell into place like it was meant to be.” He was offered a full-time position at the Special Olympics during his internship with them, and after six years, he became the program director where he coordinates state-wide competitions. “Getting out there on competition day, seeing the athletes smile and hearing how excited the athletes get, that’s the best part,” Eason says. Eason has been able to visit athletes all over the state, attend conferences and organize meetand-greets between the Special Olympics athletes and celebrities such as Mark Henry. Eason’s goals for the future include expanding the fleet of
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vehicles — wherein they started with none and now have 32 buses, cars and trailers — and providing hotel funds. He also hopes to expand upon branding and equipment that athletes use at events. This year, Flynn’s goal is to compete in the Special Olympics USA Games in Orlando, which will be held from June 4th to 12th. She will be competing in tennis with her former 6th-grade teacher, Jennifer Lucas, as her teammate. The two will compete as part of a Unified Team, which is a program designed to bring together athletes both with and without intellectual disabilities to compete and succeed together. Flynn has tried seemingly every sport that the Special Olympics offers. Last year, she did 12 sports, ranging from equestrian
