First Hope students compete at Florida Special Olympics

Evan Turner Grimes and Guillermo Alessandro Liriano participated in the Special Olympics Florida State Summer games Friday, May 19, and Saturday, May 20.

Andrea Mujica

STAFF WRITER

For the first time, two students from The First Hope of The First Academy participated in the Special Olympics Florida State Summer Games Friday, May 19, and Saturday, May 20, at the ESPN Wide World of Sports,

For eighth-grader Evan Turner Grimes, 15, Special Olympics has introduced him to the world of sports — specifically basketball and soccer. “I like to kick the ball, and I get to run and jump and learn new skills,” he said. “(My favorite part) has been getting to play with some of my friends and getting a ribbon when I win. I like to practice with coach (Matt Buchanan).”

Evan’s mother, Tiffany Grimes, has seen her son believe more in himself since the family got him involved in Special Olympics.

“I definitely see that it has built confidence in him,” she said. “He has two older siblings who both play — or did play — sports when they were in

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“I’m going to miss my athletes, the seniors (who) are coming up and the possibility of missing their signings — when they make those decisions — and I think, overall, the culture that we’ve developed (here),” she said. “I’ll miss my coaches, a lot. I will miss the Holcombs; this will be the first time that we have not lived in the same area or worked at the same school in 27 years, so they are like family. … I will

Eaves arrived at Foundation Academy five years ago from Rocky Bayou Christian School in Niceville near Pensacola. She was hired in February 2018 and worked part-time to allow her time to learn the program and better adapt to the position. She took the role full-time three moths later.

Alongside her assistant athletic director, Lynn Holcomb — who also came to Foundation in 2018 — Eaves has provided the Lions with a new way of doing things: Pursue 633.

“Her legacy at Foundation will be that she always talked about spiritual growth and putting our faith with our sports and tying those (two) in together,” said Brad Lord, former football operations and athletic collegiate placement director. “She (helped coaches and athletes find) success on the field and success spiritually. I think that’s her legacy. She broke through a lot of people that way.”

Over her years in the fields of coaching and teaching, Eaves has realized leading young student-athletes toward success does not necessarily mean to have a great win-lose record. Instead, she worked hard to install a

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