Cole Cleworth after giving an inspired reading of the Athlete Oath at the 2017 Summer Games Opening Ceremony
If you ask SOWI athlete Cole Cleworth what he is most excited about for this Thursday’s Run With The Cops in Wisconsin Rapids, he’ll tell you the glow in the dark element of the night run. “The glo-sticks are cool when it gets dark,” Cleworth said.
And Cleworth should know. He ran in the very first one held in Wisconsin Rapids in 2015 when he and his mother participated together. He enjoyed the event so much that he eventually offered to help plan it. This year, Cleworth was a part of the Wisconsin Rapids Run With The Cops Planning Committee. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone familiar with Cleworth’s contributions to SOWI. After years of competing in the likes of bowling, snow shoeing, athletics, and so much more, Cleworth transitioned to coaching to help give back. He is now an athlete coach focusing on helping his fellow athletes improve in bowling and athletics at his Wisconsin Rapids agency.
He also has taken the Polar Plunge in Wisconsin Rapids the last three years to help raise funds for SOWI. In 2017, he was the top fundraising individual in Wisconsin Rapids, raising more than $4,200 for SOWI athletes.
“I like to help out with Special Olympics and I like working with the other people who help out with Special Olympics Wisconsin, including the coaches, staff and officers,” Cleworth said.
Cleworth at the 2017 Wisconsin Rapids Polar Plunge
For Run With The Cops, Cleworth attended the planning meetings and helped brainstorm ideas to make this year’s event the best yet. He also helped with the promotion of the run by attending community events and working information tables to help get the word out. One notable time for Cleworth where he got to help promote Run With The Cops was at a Wisconsin Rapids Rafters baseball game.
He will also be working the actual event on Thursday night, helping with set-up, logistics and emceeing. Unfortunately this means he won’t be able to run the race himself. But that’s okay with Cleworth. He enjoys working to make sure others enjoy themselves. It’s why he volunteered to be on the committee in the first place.
So if you make it to the Wisconsin Rapids Run With The Cops and you see Cleworth lending a hand wherever he’s needed, make sure to say hello and thank him for helping to make the event such a huge success!
