Life Lessons of Determination

It’s easy to say that parents of Olympic athletes are incredibly proud of their children. Bloomsdale Excavating employee Joe Fischer and his wife Kim can say the same of their daughter Sarah. Joe has worked for BE for seven years. For those unfamiliar with Sarah’s story, she contracted bacterial meningitis when she was 3 1/2 months old and at 10 months she suffered a stroke.

The prognosis was grim; doctors didn’t expect that she would ever walk. Fast forward to today. Sarah has participated in the Special Olympics for the last five years through the Ste. Genevieve R-II School District. Joe says she has come a long way since her first competition where she had to walk with the assistance of her teacher.

Sarah competes in the Special Olympics in Cape Girardeau in both the spring and in the fall. She likes bowling the best. The Spring Olympics are held at the Show Me Center in Cape. This past April, Sarah competed in the 30-meter independent walk and the t-ball toss. Yes, Sarah proved doctors wrong and walks independently. Sarah won silver in the toss and gold in the walk.

She was very proud of her accomplishment, as were all her fans – especially Dad. Joe says Sarah has faced many challenges that they didn’t think she would be able to handle. She has surprised them all with her determination and perseverance.

Kim says the Special Olympics is a great event and shares her thoughts, “It’s amazing to see all these individuals get to do events and sports that without Special Olympics they would never experience. It’s also great for the parents and care givers of the participants. We see these kids and adults struggle daily with life. But on this day – everyone is the same and everyone gets to do the best they can and still feel the pride of the winning and getting that GOLD or SILVER medal. The whole day puts a warm glow in your heart.”

For more information on the Special Olympics, visit their website at www.specialolympics.org.