Charity Spotlight Champions for Champions

A Pageant for Champions

BY CARLTON REESE

The Champions for Champions organization takes much stock in its name, derived from the notion that those who earn the ‘champions’ moniker can do so not just from winning titles and trophies on the field of play, but also for inspiring others in how they live their lives. The Ocala-based charity under the direction of founder Maria Roman is showing champions reside even among the special needs members of the community.

Roman started Champions for Champions with other local community leaders 10 years ago with the simple goal of raising money for charity, money that would remain in the community as opposed to seeing a healthy chunk finding its way to a national organizing body elsewhere. Roman, who worked with Special Olympics for 20 years and whose son has Down syndrome, saw a need here to include people like her son in many aspects of life the rest of us enjoy.

It started with a program sponsored by Toastmasters International, an organization that teaches public speaking and leadership skills. The notion of public speaking lessons for people with Down syndrome perhaps had not occurred to most people, but Roman thought differently.

“We want to create endless possibilities – that’s our motto,” Roman said.

Initially, it was not easy, according to Roman. Mentors, which included Dr. Manal Fakhoury, Laila Fakhoury and Lisa Reilly, wondered if they could reach the students, who had trouble focusing and seemed to lack the desire to be there at first. “I said, give me a few months; give them a little time,” Roman said. “Within three months they all blossomed. Some of them would stand up and give speeches. We even invited some of their teachers from before who couldn’t believe what they were seeing.”

The program was the first of its kind in the state of Florida to be sponsored by Toastmasters and led to other programs geared toward not just the physical abilities of the kids, but also their mental acumen that has been largely untapped.

With the success of the public speaking program came the advent of the UniversAbility Pageant, which is a beauty pageant for special needs kids and helps them showcase the talents they learn at Champions for Champions, such as music, dancing, arts and

crafts, cooking and even sports. Initially just a pageant for local kids in 2016, the past five years have witnessed such growth that the pageant is now an international phenomenon.

“When we posted (the 2016 pageant) on Facebook, it spread like wildfire,” Roman said. “The second year, a friend of mine who has a connection with some pageantry in Miami said she wanted to help out. We had it at the Paddock Mall and Miss Florida came in to do the awards and judging – Miss Orlando and Miss Tampa came in as well.”

This year, the pageant went global as contestants participated virtually from the Philippines, Israel, South Africa, Australia, Japan and other countries. Unlike other pageants, however, the UniversAbility Pageant sticks to its goal of inclusivity as no one is turned down based on gender or disability. Roman recalls one father whose son has Down syndrome, but was able to participate in the pageant:

“He said most of the time his son was called a freak or something like that and that this (pageant) is showing the world, ‘my son is also a prince.’

“They have so many talents out there that I would have never believed. You see so many of them that are just waiting to have that opportunity and that’s what we’re doing is giving them that opportunity.”

Every year the pageant has a different theme, and in 2021 it was fittingly a tribute to heroes, the front-line responders during the COVID pandemic. All winners will be featured in the next year’s calendar.

The schedule of activities at Champions for Champions is quite busy. The week consists of the music program on Mondays, Tuesday bowling, Wednesday dance classes, Thursday culinary classes and Friday arts and crafts. They don’t simply attend classes then go home – students put their skills to work in the community.

During the holidays, choirs sing at nursing homes and at the end of each 6-week cooking program, the students’ skills are put on display and judged.

“They don’t just do baked potatoes,” Roman said. “They start the first six weeks all eggs, then go to Italian, then all Asian. Food is a cultural thing of togetherness; they learn about different cultures and not just preparing food.”

The big fund raiser comes every year in April with the Champions for Champions celebrity golf tournament and clay shooting competition. Former Miami Dolphins football player Don Nottingham is intimately involved with the organization and uses his connections with NFL players to make it a gala event of star athletes; hence, ‘champions’ for champions.

The golf tournament and clay shooting competition take place the same weekend to create a true extravaganza to support a unique and wonderful cause and help ensure the organization’s mission of keeping all funds in local hands. This happens through a network almost solely of volunteers and minimal administrative costs.

Anyone wanting to volunteer their time, interested in the golf tournament or clay shooting competition, or looking to donate money to Champions for Champions can go online to the organization’s web site: championsforchampions.org or visit the group’s page on Facebook.