Volunteer Spotlight: Tyler Tamayose, Special Olympics Alberta-Lethbridge
With a lifetime of sports experience, Tyler Tamayose made the leap from playing on the field to going behind the scenes to create opportunities for Special Olympics athletes.
Playing competitive hockey then baseball, Tyler Tamayose, used his skills and dedication to open doors in his life which gave him the opportunity represent Alberta and Canada as a first baseman while he attended William Woods University in Missouri.
“My whole life, I have given my time and effort to sports,” says Tyler Tamayose.
“Playing college sports in the United States was an amazing experience, but when I graduated I wanted to find an organization that would allow me to use my knowledge as an athlete, as well as a very eager committee member.”
And this eagerness led him to volunteer with Special Olympics this past year. Combining his wealth of knowledge for sports and his passion to help, Tamayose jumped at the opportunity to be a volunteer coordinator for the local Special Olympics program in Lethbridge.
“I started at the end of last summer and it has been both an amazing and fulfilling experience,” says Tamayose.
“I found that although I have immense sporting knowledge, my skills in the office will give the athletes the best opportunity to flourish on the field. It’s amazing, because being behind the scenes you seldom get recognized for your efforts, but we here at Special Olympics, know at the end of the day if we work that much harder recruiting volunteers, organizing fundraising events, and developing ourselves better, we will in the end make our athletes sports that much more enjoyable and stress free.”
It is this devotion to create the best athlete experience that drives Tamayose. In just his first year with Special Olympics, he has helped in fundraisers, organizing tournaments and maintaining the daily sport programs. Fitting enough time for work and life while giving your time to Special Olympics can be a delicate balancing act, but at the end of the day, volunteers know that all the hard work is all about making a difference and being part of the community.
“Special Olympics athletes amaze me every day,” says Tamayose. “It is easy to be a volunteer coordinator for such an amazing organization. When recruiting volunteers, our amazing athletes are the ones that in the end gain the love of each and every volunteer by their outstanding work ethic and the smile you see on their faces after. This experience alone entices volunteers to keep coming back each time. So, to put it simply our athletes inspire me to work that much harder and to exhaust all options in the community in hopes of making that smile brighter than it already is!
Tyler Tamayose’s experience is not out of the ordinary with Special Olympics. The contagious positivity of Special Olympics athletes fuels the need to spread the movement and create more opportunities for athletes to flourish, and it is volunteers who are the backbone of this movement. Special Olympics would like to say thank you to for your commitment Tyler Tamayose and all the volunteers who have been with us from one to 25 years!
To learn more about the Special Olympics program in Lethbridge, go to www.specialolympics.ab.ca/lethbridge. You can sign up to volunteer to be part of the team!