KALISPELL — Jenny Griswold has been dedicated to the Special Olympics for 27 years, finding her passion in helping these kids succeed as athletes.
“Right from the beginning, I loved it. I love competition. And these were people with disabilities competing and seriously competing. They put everything they got into it. And it just grew over the years into a passion,” said Griswold, who is Kalispell Schools Special Olympics Coordinator.
Jenny began her career working as a wildland firefighter, but after having her first child, she was looking for a less dangerous job. Creating acceptance for the kids has kept Jenny in the special education field for so long.
“I believe that people with disabilities need acceptance in the world and Special Olympics is a big huge part of that. They not only feel accepted, but they can accomplish athletic feats. It's just a great place to be to watch people succeed in athletic adventures, where they might not have had that chance without special ed programs and without Special Olympics,” said Griswold.
Even though Jenny has worked with kids without special needs and enjoys that as well, she feels she has a special ability to work with special education students.
“People call it lack of communication, where I see it more as their way of communicating where other people don't understand. I think I understand and I think our special ed department understands. That’s what's kept me there with a smaller group that I believe I'm helping more to succeed,” said Griswold.
While Jenny is stepping down as the Special Olympics coordinator, she will continue to work with special education students at Glacier High School and help with the Special Olympics where she can continue her amazing work.
“It's fun to watch. It's fun to be part of even the failures and those failures, if you can call them that, you get up and you try again. And watching kids who people said would never be able to do physical competitions, it drew me in and it's been a passion of mine and one of the greatest things I've been part of,” said Griswold.
