Volunteer Spotlight: Kylee Rae Craig

Every month we’ll spotlight a new Special Olympics Pennsylvania volunteer who has made an awesome impact on our community.

This month, we are proud to feature Washington County powerlifting coach, Kylee Rae Craig.

Before Kylee reached out to SOPA on social media with an interest in becoming a volunteer, Washington County didn’t have a powerlifting program. Now, they’ve got eight athletes training, including four who competed for the first time at the Western Fall Sectional at Slippery Rock University. Kylee was able to get powerlifting belts donated for her athletes and is hopeful the program will continue to grow under her leadership.

“For me, powerlifting is my job. Special Olympics has helped me be reminded of the joy in the sport again, it is AMAZING. The athletes show up excited to learn and willing to try anything.”

– Kylee Rae Craig, Washington County Powerlifting Coach

Kylee, a mom of three, also runs a dog grooming business and only began lifting three years ago. She competes for Misfit Powerlifting and currently ranks Top 5 in the world in bench press (309 lbs) and squat (518 lbs). She currently holds three national records and has spent the previous two years ranked in the top 10 in the world in her weight class. She will soon be competing at the US Nationals with hopes of qualifying for the United States Powerlifting Team!

You can read more about Kylee in this fantastic 2018 article published in the Observer-Reporter and follow her on Instagram here.

York County’s Jonathan Martin competing at SONA Golf Championships

From September 22-25, 2019, York County golfer Jonathan Martin will compete at the Special Olympics North America Golf Championships in Nashville, TN. This is the second time this international tournament has been held in Nashville, Tennessee. It was previously held in Nashville two decades ago during its inaugural year. 

More than 230 Special Olympics athletes and Unified partners, representing 23 U.S. and Canadian Special Olympics Programs compete at Hermitage Golf Course in five different divisions. Jon is competing at Level 4 and is joined by his caddie Nathaniel Martin and coach Martha Martin.

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UPDATE: In his first round of the tournament, Jonathan shot a 53. In his second round, he shot a 52, for a two-day total of 105.

In his final round, Jonathan shot a 50, giving him a total of 155, good for second place in Level 4, Division 3! Congrats, Jonathan!!

LGPA professional golfer In-Kyung Kim (I.K. Kim) welcomed the delegations at the Opening Ceremonies and will spend time with them throughout the tournament.

Throwback Thursday: QVC staff volunteers at Fall Fest

At the 30th Anniversary of Fall Festival last year, QVC sent 30 volunteers to Villanova’s campus to participate in the fun! Pictured are some of the QVC volunteers with the Area M soccer team.

The QVC team is planning to volunteer again at this year’s Fall Fest and if you’d like to join them, simply visit our website for more information.

Photo and information provided by Kristen Skutch.