Thielges named coach of the year

Jenny Thielges of Jamestown has been named Special Olympics North Dakota Coach of the Year.

Thielges has been as swim coach with Special Olympics for nine years and has served as head coach for seven years. She is a certified Special Olympics coach and also has her WSI certification, CPR and first aid certification. She also sets up the venue and recruits volunteers to run the events.

“You can be having the worst day in the world but seeing the enthusiasm and welcoming smiles on the faces of the athletes when you get to a practice, you realize the day wasn’t so bad after all,” Thielges said.

Erica Halvorson of Jamestown has been awarded the Special Olympics North Dakota Female Athlete of the Year award.

Halvorson has been involved in Special Olympics for 10 years and competes in soccer, bowling, basketball, volleyball and athletics. She is the daughter of Ken and Wendy Halvorson of Jamestown.

Betty Hjelmhaug of Jamestown was awarded the Special Olympics State Volunteer of the Year award.

Hjelmhaug has been involved with Special Olympics for more than two decades. She first became involved as the parent of an athlete. She has taken on many roles, including coach, fundraiser, Jamestown management team member, state board member, donor, chaperone, event organizer and advocate of the program. She has coached figure skating, volleyball and snow shoe racing for the Jamestown program. She dedicates countless hours volunteering for state and local events and activities.

Along with her daughter Heather, she has represented Special Olympics North Dakota at Capitol Hill Day in Washington, D.C., for the past two years advocating legislatively for programs to serve children and adults with intellectual disabilities.

Tags: special olympics, sports, thielges, coach, award