[00:00:00] Speaker A: Welcome to Shining Through Inspiring Forces of
[00:00:04] Speaker B: Autism with show host Jennifer Dantzler.
[00:00:07] Speaker A: My name is Sarah and I have autism. Thank you for taking the time to learn more about the world of autism. If you enjoy what you hear today and don't forget to follow this podcast.
[00:00:18] Speaker B: Hey everyone, this is Jennifer Dantzler and I'm the executive director and founder of Inspire nd, a nonprofit whose mission is to create truly inclusive communities through education and engagement. The goal of this podcast is to shine a light on real people and their stories in hopes of inspiring others who are on this journey of autism. Either themselves, their child, their loved one, their co worker. I truly believe ignorance is not bliss and we cannot be inclusive communities if we do not understand the people in the community. With autism now affecting 1 in 31 people, we need to get louder about this topic. We recognize that autism is a spectrum. There are a lot of people with a lot of different needs, a lot of resources available or none available. And we know that in every episode we can't meet everyone's needs for their species specific interest.
However, we hope that in each episode you do gleam some kind of insight as to how you can help your child or yourself be a better advocate. And as we go through our podcast, our goal really is to address the entire spectrum, the various needs, the various environments that we're going to be in. And we hope that there's something in every episode for each one of you. So let's get started.
Okay, listeners, today is a very special two part episode. First, we will be talking to Jerome Davis, the basketball coach who took Team Texas to the USA Special Olympics Games and won gold. And right after that, we will be talking to the awe inspiring Peyton Mattingly, a golfer who went to the Special Olympics USA Games with Texas and his dad who was his caddy. Both wonderful guests. So stay tuned. We welcome Dr. Jerome Davis here with us. He's actually the head of delegation for Special Olympics in the Lone Star College system. He just got back from a big exciting trip which we're going to get into in a minute. But first I want to talk just a little bit about Special Olympics, a little bit about you, so that listeners can get to know you, why you're here, and why you're doing what you're doing. So thank you so much for being here.
[00:02:13] Speaker C: Thank you for having me. I'm originally from Louisiana, been in education. This is year 21 for me. Doesn't seem like it, but it's 21 years in education. Everything from a bus driver to a school administrator moved to Texas about five years ago and got into Special Olympics about a year and a half ago, went on Star College Tomball and grew the program to all of our campuses across the Lone Star College system.
[00:02:35] Speaker A: Wow.
[00:02:35] Speaker B: All of the campuses across Lone Star, that, that's huge. Because Lone Star is also growing by leaps and bounds.
[00:02:40] Speaker C: Yes. Right about now we have about 98,000 students.
[00:02:43] Speaker B: Holy cow. I had no idea Lone Star had grown that much. Yeah, that could be probably a whole podcast in itself as far as what the services Lone Star is offering now.
[00:02:51] Speaker C: Right.
[00:02:51] Speaker B: So what inspired Lone Star College to get involved with Special Olympics?
[00:02:56] Speaker C: So two of our campuses have a program called Life Path. It's for our neurodivergent students who, who are on the spectrum to allow them to get an associate's degree or a certificate from going to college.
[00:03:06] Speaker B: We've actually had a couple of the Life Path students as guests, Matthew being one of them. So if you're interested to learn more about Life Path, go back and listen to those episodes. Sorry, keep going.
[00:03:15] Speaker C: We had some students approach us wanting to start a club organization on campus that's fit for them because they didn't feel comfortable joining other organizations. So we started Special Olympics and it's grown since.
[00:03:29] Speaker B: So many people think Special Olympics is really just about sports. So can you talk a little bit more about what Special Olympics really means?
[00:03:36] Speaker C: We compete under the unified model of Special Olympics, which means our neurodiverse and our neurotypical students compete together on the same team. It's more welcoming. They, they feel more friendship and more wanted.
[00:03:48] Speaker B: So there's various sports, but then it's about more than just the sports. As you said, it's about the friendships. It's about diligence, communication.
[00:03:55] Speaker C: It's about the leadership opportunities as well. This is a stud, an organization on campus. The students run the organization. The advisors pretty much just help schedule for them to go to competitions and go to competitions with them.
[00:04:06] Speaker B: Okay, so does each campus have different sports or are there only a few main sports that Lone Stars participating in?
[00:04:12] Speaker C: So all of our campuses are going to participate in the sports of basketball, flag football, bowling. It's a well rounded club for all of our students.
[00:04:21] Speaker B: Okay, so you don't necessarily need to be a full fledged athlete to participate.
[00:04:24] Speaker C: No, you can have zero experience in sports as long as you want to come have fun.
[00:04:28] Speaker B: So I think that's really important for our listeners too. As far as as whether you're self advocate listening or parent listening. Who is the ideal candidate for Special Olympics? Is there certain challenges that you shouldn't have or certain skills you need to have.
[00:04:41] Speaker C: Like I said, for our Unified Model, anybody can participate whether you have a disability or not. If you don't have a disability, you're considered one of our unified partners who would help our athletes participate in that sport. For example, for basketball, we have three athletes on the floor at a time with two unified partners. They get to play together.
[00:04:58] Speaker B: I'm fascinated by this unified Model because I think that's also an incredible opportunity for our neurotypical college students to gain leadership skills, but also be exposed to maybe things they hadn't been exposed to before.
[00:05:09] Speaker C: And some of our other clubs and organizations on campuses, such as our future teachers, have gotten involved with Special Olympics because they want to become teachers and they want to teach special needs students. So they come participate with us to get that experience of working with them.
[00:05:22] Speaker B: True inclusion. Right to true partnership. True partnership. Love it. Tell me about a victory or story of, like, an athlete that's just been really special for you.
[00:05:31] Speaker C: Just happened this past spring. We started our Lone Star Montgomery campus competing with Special Olympics. And one of our athletes never competed in any sports or anything like that. Went to his first competition and shocked everybody and won the gold medal.
[00:05:45] Speaker D: Wow.
[00:05:46] Speaker C: He shocked himself because he didn't know he can do it. And we kept encouraging him during the competition, hey, you can do it. You got this. Ended up winning the gold medal in his division.
[00:05:54] Speaker B: So much more than sports, it's about confidence, Confidence building. Exactly what does training or commitment look like throughout the year? Can you join multiple sports or just one sport?
[00:06:03] Speaker C: You can join multiple sports. Training usually starts four to six weeks prior to the competition, two or three times a week after class.
[00:06:11] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:06:11] Speaker C: We don't take away class time. You're paying to be a student at Lone Star, so we want to make sure that you're getting what you paid for. We want you to get your academics done first.
[00:06:19] Speaker B: Okay, yes, academics first. But then this sounds. Sounds wonderful. So a couple times a week. And how often are these competitions throughout the year?
[00:06:26] Speaker C: It varies. Each sport has a competition during a particular sports season, such as right now, we're in the summer league for topgolf and basketball. So our top golf athletes are practicing on Mondays. Today we had basketball practice this morning. It's constant.
[00:06:40] Speaker B: So one athlete could participate in sports probably throughout the year, throughout the various competitions as sort of a mainstay for them or social outlet for them. Okay. You'll have athletes because a lot. Some of them have intellectual disabilities, some of them have autism, some of them have other Challenges. Correct, Correct. How do you, like, manage that? How do you make sure every athlete gets the supports they need?
[00:07:04] Speaker C: So we plan our practices based off of what our student athletes need. We go no longer than an hour.
[00:07:10] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:07:10] Speaker C: We found that going longer than an hour takes away from the common goal of our students having that camaraderie with teammates, and we don't want to lose them. So usually about an hour in, we kind of end practice and let them go on about finish their day.
[00:07:25] Speaker B: So a lot of these students are maybe life path students from the campuses that have life path.
[00:07:31] Speaker C: Correct. But also our other campuses that don't have the life path program, we have several students that are participating with Special Olympics as well.
[00:07:40] Speaker B: Okay. Very, very cool.
[00:07:41] Speaker C: So it's not just limited to our life path program. It's for all of our students.
[00:07:45] Speaker B: Okay, wonderful. And then I would imagine that if there's a. A Special Olympics student who maybe needs either some more physical guidance on the court, for example, or might be someone who tends to elope or run from the situation, one of your unified partners might be assigned to, say, help him in particular.
[00:08:04] Speaker C: Correct. Our unified partners, they really are a tremendous help to our. To our delegation meeting outside of practice. They do a lot of things outside of practice, such as go to the movies, go out to eat. They hang out with each other a lot. So they're building relationships as well.
[00:08:18] Speaker B: Yeah. That's exactly what we should be doing. Right. In every aspect of our community. I love it. Okay. You just recently had the opportunity to serve as Team Texas's head basketball coach for the 2026 USA Games. I believe that was in Minnesota.
[00:08:32] Speaker C: It was an experience to remember. We actually got to find a private jet to Minneapolis.
[00:08:36] Speaker D: Wow.
[00:08:37] Speaker C: They welcomed us out with a red carpet. We stayed in the dorm rooms on the University of Minnesota campus, had a wonderful opening ceremonies that was aired on ESPN plus and Disney plus, practiced on Sunday. We had one day of practice and competition started on Monday.
[00:08:51] Speaker B: So what. Who came as Team Texas? The Lone Star students? Or were there students from other Special Olympics?
[00:08:57] Speaker C: So we actually had one Lone Star student participate in the USA Games, but he competed in the sport of golf. He made the. The Special Olympics USA team in the sport of golf. Peyton Manning. He came in fourth place.
[00:09:09] Speaker B: Wow.
[00:09:10] Speaker C: Did a remarkable job.
Made new friendships. Just to see the smile on his face. Throughout the week, our competitions were going on at the same time.
[00:09:17] Speaker B: So what was the environment like there at this event?
[00:09:20] Speaker C: A lot of people cheering, encouraging the athletes and the partners. Made you feel like you're at home. We actually lost the first game by seven. We had to leave by 12. Six minutes left in the ball game and went flat the last six minutes, and we ended up losing by seven. So we ended up coming back and winning the gold medal.
[00:09:37] Speaker B: Wow.
[00:09:38] Speaker C: Came back in and beat a very good Indiana team, beat a very good Florida team and ended up seeing Indiana again in the semifinals. We ended up beating them again by seven. And then we ended up playing Maryland in the gold medal game, which we lost to them in the very first game, and we ended up beating them by 18.
[00:09:54] Speaker B: That's some grit right there. That's some hang in there ness that not a lot of people have.
[00:09:58] Speaker C: And we end up caught the injury bug as well. We had several of our athletes go down throughout the week, but they all persevered. And on Friday for the gold medal game, everybody played, came together as a team, and fulfilled the goal that they wanted to fulfill, which was win the gold medal and bring it back home to Texas.
[00:10:14] Speaker B: Okay, so let's say that again. Team Texas just won the 2026 USA Games at Minnesota, the basketball team. Congratulations.
[00:10:23] Speaker C: Thank you.
[00:10:23] Speaker B: That's huge. That is very exciting. Was there a particular moment during the games when you said, this is amazing? Like, I can't believe we're even here?
[00:10:30] Speaker C: Just the.
Going into the gym, seeing a number of supporters, parents, fans that just came out to watch the games was truly amazing. The gold medal game was standing room only in the gym. That environment alone sparked our athletes and partners to come out and give their best effort.
[00:10:50] Speaker B: Well, and I was just gonna ask that question. Did that intimidate them or did that excite them?
[00:10:54] Speaker C: It made them very excited.
They were excited to see when they walked into the gym because they introduced each team as they walked out onto the floor more to see the number of fans that came out to support them and both teams, not just Team Texas, to see everybody just cheering and having a good time.
[00:11:10] Speaker B: You went as the coach, and we're trying to help teach them, and our unified players are trying to help them. What has this experience, one of these players taught you patience.
[00:11:19] Speaker C: Instead of rushing through the drills and going through the game, helping them to relax. First of all, I had to relax myself. Being up during the game, just getting in a coaching mode, getting excited for them. Had to remind myself, hey, you need to relax. If they see you uptight, you need to be relaxed so they can. So they can relax and have fun.
[00:11:38] Speaker B: Yeah. I always say that for leadership training that you. You set the thermostat right, and so they're Gonna follow your lead on that, which is really important. Had you coached previously to doing this?
[00:11:46] Speaker C: So I've coached high school ball in Louisiana, have two states championships as an assistant coach high school.
[00:11:53] Speaker B: So yeah, so this probably was a pretty different vibe and you really had to.
[00:11:57] Speaker C: Yeah, this is totally different. I actually called my high school coach after, after I won the gold medal and say, hey coach, I just did something really big. I said, I took a team to the Special Olympic USA Games and we won the gold medal.
[00:12:08] Speaker B: That is so cool. That is so cool. What are some misperceptions that are out there? Well, first let's start about misperceptions about people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
[00:12:16] Speaker C: They're just like us. They want to be loved, they want to be wanted, they want to be accepted. Having a Special Olympics club and delegation on all star campuses, giving them that, it's giving them the opportunity to shine. It's giving them those leadership opportunities. Like I said earlier, this is a student ran organization. The students run everything.
[00:12:33] Speaker B: That's amazing because then, then they really own it.
[00:12:35] Speaker C: They take one of the pillars alongside college of owning it.
[00:12:38] Speaker B: Oh, and that's one of the pillars. That's even better. I love it. What we're trying to say here today is Special Olympics is about way more than sport. So if you're a child or if you're a self advocate, it does not matter if you're an athlete. It's more about the experience.
[00:12:50] Speaker C: Correct.
[00:12:51] Speaker B: Okay. How hard is it? Because you helped start the Special Olympics
[00:12:54] Speaker C: alone and it wasn't hard at all. Turning in a couple forms to the state's Special Olympics organization and following their guidelines, it was a very simple process.
[00:13:03] Speaker B: So if there are other people listening, either at other college systems or just other local organizations, they should just do it right?
[00:13:10] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:13:11] Speaker B: As Nike says, just do it right. Okay. And no, Nike did not pay me to say that. Okay. And then lastly, like as you reflect on the 2026 US games and the growth of the program at Lone Star College, what excites you? The about the athletes and the future
[00:13:24] Speaker C: of Special Olympics, seeing the program grow. We started the delegations on each one of the other campuses, minus Lone Star Tomball in January. And we're headed up to over 300 students that are participating.
[00:13:36] Speaker D: Wow.
[00:13:37] Speaker B: So between January and May you gained over 300 students and you just took Team Texas to the USA Games.
So everyone needs to be doing it right. I mean, whether you're in Texas or another part of the country, are there qualifications that you needed to have to start the Special Olympics Team.
[00:13:55] Speaker C: As with any organization, you have to go through a background check, become certified to coach each sport through Special Olympics. For each sport. Only takes about an hour or so to complete online.
Very simple.
Gives the rules, gives the expectations, and you just answer some questions following up on it.
[00:14:12] Speaker B: So if you have listeners and they're going, huh, maybe, maybe not. Should I do this? Should I not? What piece of advice would you give them?
[00:14:19] Speaker C: Do it. It's a great joy. It brings such humility to me to be able to do something that's bigger than me.
[00:14:25] Speaker B: That's such a great way to say it. That is about so much bigger than you. It's about bigger than each one of us individually. It's about the collective we.
[00:14:32] Speaker C: Right, Correct.
[00:14:33] Speaker B: Yes. Well, Jerome, I am so grateful that you are here.
I'm so grateful that you have committed to our students within the Lone Star College system. If anyone would like to talk to Jerome about starting it or what he started, would you be okay if listeners reached out to me to reach out to you?
[00:14:50] Speaker C: Yes, definitely.
[00:14:51] Speaker B: Okay, so reach out to
[email protected] if you'd like to talk to Dr. Davis, that would be wonderful. He'd be more than happy to share with you. I think he's a case in point. Exactly. Of being an inspiration and just get started.
[00:15:04] Speaker C: Yes. And we also have a website, Lone Star. Edu Special Olympics.
[00:15:09] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:15:10] Speaker C: So all of our events that we participate in within Lone Star system is on that website.
[00:15:15] Speaker B: And do you have to be a student at Lone Star to be on the Lone Star Special Olympics?
[00:15:20] Speaker C: Yes, that's one of the qualifications. You do have to be a student. Student to participate with Special Olympics at Lone Star College. But there are several local community organization that have teams as well that you can get and participate with.
[00:15:32] Speaker B: Okay, good to know. So if you're at Lone Star, absolutely. Go forward with their Special Olympic system. If you're not at Lone Star, find your local one. I would imagine on their Special Olympics, like national website, you can probably find the local organizations.
[00:15:44] Speaker C: The Special Olympics Texas website is sotx.org and they have a list of all the. All of the delegations that are in our region that you can get in contact with to participate.
[00:15:55] Speaker B: And I would say if you're a parent listening or a self advocate listening, just go try it once or twice. Right. Because it's probably a little overwhelming and scary, but just go try it.
[00:16:05] Speaker C: Yeah. Come to the competitions. Just come. Come see a Special Olympics competition. That's what I recommend to anybody. Come see A Special Olympics event. It will change your mind forever.
[00:16:15] Speaker B: We're very honored to have Chad Mattingly and Peyton Mattingly. Peyton Mattingly went to Special Olymp USA Games in the area of golf, and his dad was his caddy. So we're going to hear some interesting stuff about that. So, Chad and Peyton, thank you for being here.
[00:16:30] Speaker A: So glad to be here with you.
[00:16:32] Speaker D: Thank you for letting me do this. This is a great opportunity for me.
[00:16:36] Speaker B: We've been wanting to shine a light a on Special Olympics and our athletes, and so we're very excited to have you here. Peyton, let's start with you first, about golf in general. At what age did you start playing?
[00:16:47] Speaker D: I started playing golf when I was around 10 years old. I started through the first tee program.
[00:16:54] Speaker B: I love first tee. I've known them for years. Oh, my goodness. That's so exciting. Okay, wonderful. And what do you like about golf?
[00:17:00] Speaker D: Being with a team, competing at my highest level. Just. I love the grind. I love just meeting new friends. I love competing. I've just been so grateful with all of the coaches I've had, just with all of the people I've met. Team with Polk has been such a great team for me in all the tournaments I played, and I've met so many great people, great friends. They've actually named an award after me called the Peyton Manley Spirit Award. Holy cow. That was great. Yeah. That was by far the best memory I've had with them was at my senior banquet.
[00:17:36] Speaker B: The Peyton Mattingly Spirit Award.
[00:17:39] Speaker D: Correct.
[00:17:40] Speaker B: Love that. How many people can say they've had an award named after them? Well, congratulations.
[00:17:44] Speaker D: Thank you so much.
[00:17:45] Speaker B: I love it. And when did you start in Special Olympics?
[00:17:48] Speaker D: I started on the golf team on 2023. So the past three years, I've been on the Special Olympics Woodwind Shooting Stars golf team in the Woodwinds, Texas. Oh, okay.
[00:17:59] Speaker B: So, dad, what prompted the starting of Special Olympics?
[00:18:03] Speaker A: So he played basketball with the Hurricanes while we lived here in Kingwood and then attended Kingwood schools. But then his transition when he started going to Lone Star over in Montgomery. Then we moved over closer to Conroe and the Woodlands, and that was when he started with the golf golf program over there. They have a fantastic group that's able to play at the Woodlands Country Club every single week to practice. And then they go to multiple tournaments all around the state. And then, of course, he has the opportunity here in the last two months to. To go to the USA Games. So, yeah, that started about two and a half, three years ago after he Graduated from Kingwood Park.
[00:18:42] Speaker B: Jerome Davis also went right as one of the coaches with you all. But he was in Batman Basketball, not golf.
[00:18:48] Speaker D: Uh huh. That's correct.
[00:18:49] Speaker B: Who was your coach for golf?
[00:18:50] Speaker A: The coach here is Kim Radcliffe.
[00:18:53] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:18:53] Speaker A: Who is the coach for our team here at the Woodlands?
[00:18:56] Speaker B: Okay, wonderful. Peyton, what makes Special Olympics great? Why are you doing Special Olympics?
[00:19:01] Speaker D: It's just such a great organization. It's for inclusion and I just love meeting all of the people. I made so many great friends through Special Olympics. That's by far the best organization I've been in. And I just love competing against other athletes. And I just love just all of the people I've met and all of the sports I've been in. I've been in basketball, baseball, and golf through Special Olympics.
[00:19:28] Speaker A: Hey, bud, you were asked that question about the Special Olympics and inclusion while you were at the USA Games. Do you remember? Do you want to tell them what you said, what inclusion means to you?
[00:19:38] Speaker D: It just means a lot.
[00:19:39] Speaker A: He actually told stories of his experience all the way back into middle school, elementary school, of feeling excluded because he was different. Being excluded from friendships, being excluded from sports teams. There were a lot of different kind of stereotypes around what he could do and what he couldn't do. And so the Special Olympics, it was Kingwood park golf that gave him his first opportunity. Coach Chancellor gave him an open opportunity to come out and to try out for the team. He had some of the basic skills down. Over the course of his sophomore, junior and senior year, he really made some major progress. As you could hear from him saying, it's not just about the game. He loves golf, but, gosh, he just loves people. He loves being included, and they were the first ones that gave him a chance. And so that meant the world to him. And so after he graduated, he quickly transitioned to the Woodland Shooting Stars. When we moved over in that area, really, I think the Special Olympics has become a place that empowers him, that gives him opportunities to let him excel, and he's just getting better and better. That's been a place where he's experienced inclusion in a very important way.
[00:20:49] Speaker B: And that's wonderful because I know Jerome talked a lot about that too, and how they have the buddies that help and. But it's about way more than just the sport.
[00:20:56] Speaker D: Yes, totally. I agree with that.
[00:20:59] Speaker B: So you have definitely played in competitions or tournaments?
[00:21:03] Speaker D: Yeah.
[00:21:03] Speaker B: Tell me a little bit about that.
[00:21:04] Speaker D: Do you get nervous on the first tee? I get nervous a lot, just with all of the pressure and everyone watching. But once I Get to, like, hole four, hole five. I just get into it, and I just get. I just love the competition, and I just get. Just all of my energy is in through the whole round, and just the adrenaline really kicks in through the round, and especially if I'm playing with a fun group, then it just makes it even more fun.
I've met two of these guys. One of them is from Alaska, and one of them is from Florida, and they were just such great guys to play with, great personalities. They were great golfers as well. And we all just having a good time playing good golf. On the back nine, I shot my lowest nine ever. Shot 38 on the back nine.
[00:21:55] Speaker B: Holy cow.
[00:21:56] Speaker D: That was really, really great. I had a blast playing with them. And I also. On the second day, I got to play with this guy that was by far the best golfer I've ever played with. And he shot a 74, and it was just great seeing all of the shots he hits and just.
Yeah, it was great meeting him. And I played really well that day as well. I was convinced, and I was just like, one shot behind them every hole, and I made a bunch of pars, and I just played some really good golf and kept me right in the tournament. So it was just a great tournament. I can't thank the USA Games enough for letting me be a part of it. Special Olympics, Texas, all of the coaches, and it was just by far the best tournament I've ever been in. And I can't thank them enough for the opportunity. Wow.
[00:22:47] Speaker B: You were made to do this. Like, you have to thank everyone.
[00:22:51] Speaker A: Some people kind of wilt under pressure, but every time that Peyton gets into a tournament, he brings his best. He finds a way. There's always times in the round when you hit a bad shot and then you hit another bad shot, and before you know it, your round can really tank. And he always figures out. And that's a little bit of my role as the caddy, too, of trying to help him refocus and just say, hey, you're one good shot away from turning your round back in a positive direction. He always shoots his best rounds in tournaments. It's like, when the pressure's on and he's playing against good competition, then he's. He brings his A game, and it's super cool to see him do that.
[00:23:30] Speaker B: Wow, that is incredible, because you're right. A lot of people don't do well. Right? They're not, quote, good test takers or any of this. Awesome. Okay, Peyton, how often do you listen to your dad's advice as the caddy about which or how to put your feet or which way the wind's blowing and all that stuff.
[00:23:48] Speaker D: To be honest, I'd rarely do it because I like playing on my own game and I like hitting the shots that I like to hit. Like driver. I love hitting the driver off the tee.
[00:23:59] Speaker B: I was gonna ask you which part of the game is your favorite? The driver.
[00:24:01] Speaker D: My favorite is by far the driving, because I hit the driver far and straight every time, and it's just a beauty to see in the air. And by far, I love hitting the driver off the tee. The big dog.
[00:24:15] Speaker B: I love it. Can I ask what kind of clubs you use?
[00:24:18] Speaker D: My driver is an old Callaway driver, and then my irons are callaway. My wedges are Cleveland wedges, and then my putter is a. Is a peen putter.
[00:24:30] Speaker B: Okay. So if there are any golf sponsors also listening on this podcast and would love to sponsor Peyton at a tournament or give him a set of clubs to use, I'm sure they'd be more than willing to have this conversation, as. Is that correct?
[00:24:43] Speaker D: I want to shout out my teammate Miles. Me and him played at the USA Games, and he's just a delight. I'm shouting Miles out. Miles Stroud.
[00:24:53] Speaker A: I love that.
[00:24:53] Speaker D: The Godfather of Special Olympics. He's just amazing. And I had a great time with him at the USA Games, and me and him were representing Team Texas, so that was great.
[00:25:05] Speaker B: And I mean, that seems like a awful lot of pressure, like, you're representing Texas, and it seems like you certainly thrived under pressure.
[00:25:12] Speaker D: Yes, for sure. For sure. It was great. I love the competition side of the pressure and making. You gotta make this putt to be right there. And I made a lot of great putts to be right there with the rest of the competition. I got fourth place in the tournament, so that was great.
[00:25:29] Speaker B: So you got fourth place in the USA Special Olympics Games, Correct.
[00:25:33] Speaker D: Yes.
[00:25:33] Speaker B: That's incredible. Congratulations.
[00:25:35] Speaker D: Yeah, thank you. Yeah, it was a great experience.
[00:25:38] Speaker B: And do you want to go back? Would you want to do it again?
[00:25:40] Speaker D: Yeah, I want to run it back. I want to go to Cleveland, Ohio, and run it back and try to get better. I want to get on the podium. My goal was to get on the podium this year. Unfortunately, I didn't. But next year, I mean. No, in 2030, I want to go to Cleveland, Ohio, and get on that podium and get a medal for Team Texas. That's my goal.
[00:26:00] Speaker B: Okay. And, Peyton, how often do you practice?
[00:26:03] Speaker D: I practice every week with the Wooden Shooting Stars. We go to the Woodlands Country Club, the Trails Course, and by far, that's a great course to practice at. Yeah, I love practicing. Every Wednesday, we get free golf at the Woodlands Country Club because Special Olympics, the Woodlands Shooting Stars, and the Woodlands Country Club, they have, like, a agreement, a partnership, that we get to play every Wednesday with them. So I just can't thank Special Olympics and the Woodlands Country Club for letting us be on their course and letting us. Us play at that very, very nice golf course. So it's just great. I love it.
[00:26:43] Speaker B: How many people are usually at your practice? How many members?
[00:26:46] Speaker D: Five or six other golfers that play 18 holes? There's me, Miles, Noah, Juan Carlos, Taylor, Blair. Yes, Blair.
So those are the guys. All of the guys that play 18 holes.
[00:27:00] Speaker B: And I would dare say you guys have all become friends in some form.
[00:27:03] Speaker A: Of course.
[00:27:03] Speaker D: We've all become really good friends on the course. We all love playing with each other.
[00:27:08] Speaker A: We all give each other a hard time.
[00:27:10] Speaker D: Yeah.
[00:27:10] Speaker A: Which is a part of the game.
[00:27:11] Speaker D: We love smack talking. Me and Miles and Juan Carlos and everyone. We all love smack talking, and it also brings up the competition, so it's just great.
[00:27:21] Speaker B: Okay, wonderful. So I'm gonna take a second now, and we're gonna go to dad, and let's talk a little bit about Peyton's diagnosis, when he was diagnosed, his journey, and why is it so important that he's doing what he's doing now?
[00:27:31] Speaker A: So Peyton was diagnosed at 2, and he was our first. And so new parents sometimes don't pick up on things the way that parents that have had children previously. And so we didn't really pick up on anything. It was my wife's mom who kind of saw his developmental challenges and delays. And so official diagnosis was at two and a half, and he really started very much kind of at square one. He needed help chewing and swallowing, sitting up and crawling and then walking. And they said that he would be limited or nonverbal at all. He wouldn't be speaking.
[00:28:07] Speaker B: Wow.
[00:28:08] Speaker A: He would have very, very limited ability to show or express emotion, express love. One can imagine, as a parent, hearing those things from doctors and all with good intention, trying to help us to be ready. But to be honest, we just weren't ready to accept that. We just knew with faith and with a lot of initiative. We really wanted Peyton to have every opportunity. So very quickly after his diagnosis, we moved to a place in Missouri that had an autism institute where there was a real, very concentrated effort. We had some. We call them our angels. Literally, they would try out different techniques, helping him master a skill and he would succeed or not. And then they would go home and they would research and literally come back the next day. I'm going to try a little bit different. We're going to do it this way. And they just worked on his behalf. It was just one of the greatest gifts that we could ever have received is people that felt called to serving special needs children and helping them take their next step. That counteracted what we were told of limitation, limitation, limitation to teachers and therapists saying, oh, no, let's see what he can do. Let's push him a little bit further. Let's help him in this way. He needs this resource.
Moving to Kingwood 12 years ago, this was a district that we knew had great resources for him. We could not have been more impressed. He was in third grade, Bear Branch elementary and then Creekwood and then K. Park. And he had every resource. He had people that championed him. Mr. Groffman at Creekwood was a huge champion for him. Coach, Chancellor and many other teachers at Cape park were always pushing and including him in classes. Initially he was just in an autism specific classroom. They moved him to on level and to where he had a hybrid program which gained confidence. It was like. Because I'm not sure if Peyton knew for sure if he could do the work until he got there. And then the teachers gave him some supports, but he proved that he could do it. So that led us to the Life Path program, which is over at Lone Star, at Tomball and at Montgomery Campus. We would have never, ever dreamed that Peyton, with all of these limitations of what we were told initially that he would be able to earn an associate's degree. It's spread out over four years. So there's a pace that's good for Peyton and the students that are there now. I think he has like a 3,5 GPA on college level work.
[00:30:47] Speaker B: Congratulations, Peyton. That's awesome.
[00:30:49] Speaker A: Yeah. And so he has proved over and over. He's going into his senior year, start in two weeks. It's just that next step. It's not big jumps most of the time. It's the next step for him and him gaining confidence as he takes the next step. He achieves the next goal. We just feel like that his potential is limitless.
[00:31:09] Speaker D: Wow.
[00:31:09] Speaker B: What a great story. Peyton. What do you want to do next? Your dad just said you're about to be a senior. So what do you think next steps after this will be? What's your associates going to be in?
[00:31:18] Speaker D: First of all, business.
It's going to be a business degree for associates. Yes.
[00:31:23] Speaker B: What do you want your next steps to be?
[00:31:24] Speaker D: Well, I have a few options. So one of them is to be a golf coach, like at the Woodlands Country Club or PGA Superstore in Sheridana, the Woodlands area. One is to just work at the Woodlands Country Club and just be a golf attendant and then just get promoted up after a few years and just work. Show them my business degree and just work through the business side of golf. I'm been growing my Instagram page a golf influencer, because I've been following so many golf influencers on social media and just. I would love to become a golf influencer just like them because they get paid a lot by YouTube and bunch of golf brands and stuff.
[00:32:08] Speaker A: It was interesting when we went to the USA Games, at the end, people were asking him, what was your favorite part? What was your favorite part? And so they expected for him to talk about the golf. And of course, he loved the golf. His most exciting things was that he got on interviews and got more followers on Instagram.
So that was his big highlight.
[00:32:30] Speaker D: That was by far my biggest highlight. I love the. After the rounds, this guy named Andrew would always. He would follow our group and he would always say, how was your round, Peyton? And I would always be like, it was great. The weather was great. I played good golf. And also got interviewed by someone through Special Olympics North America, and she was great. Part of my message got on the closing ceremonies about inclusion. Wow. So that was great. Yes, I really appreciated that.
[00:33:03] Speaker B: Okay, well, we'll also definitely put in our show notes, the tag to that interview so that, you know, listeners can also listen to that interview, too, and hopefully follow you even more.
[00:33:13] Speaker D: Yeah, I appreciate that.
[00:33:14] Speaker B: Absolutely. Okay. Dad, why was something like Special Olympics so important for him?
[00:33:18] Speaker A: First of all, it's extraordinary to be a part of the special needs community. The families, the athletes, but then the families, too. The way that we champion each other, we all are speaking a message of encouragement and empowering our athletes, noticing their skills and their gifts. Just kind of the beauty of who they are, how unique they are. And so the Special Olympics really champions that. It challenges the stereotypes. People that have been diagnosed with autism are all like this, or they all have these limitations. Peyton's a great example of this. Like, one of the stereotypes is, well, autistic people are reclusive. They sit off to themselves. They don't like talking to people. Peyton, though, early in life, we were told he would not speak. This goofball right here, he will start his day talking and he will end his day talking.
And he loves people, he loves golf. But I think he loves more being out there with. With friends, having fun and goofing off and enjoying life. I think Special Olympics breaks down some of those stereotypes and empowers athletes with a message of inclusion. And you can do it, and we need you. We can learn from each other. All of us are unique and all of us have gifts to share.
[00:34:35] Speaker B: Right, Peyton, do you want to add
[00:34:36] Speaker D: to that with all what dad said is all correct? Just the main thing I love about Special Olympics is the inclusion. And I just love being out there with. With friends and just with other golfers and other athletes. I mean, I met so many good friends through the USA Games that I've never met before.
And they were just great. I mean, a guy from Alaska, Florida, all over the country.
So it was just great being there. And the best part about it, when we got off the plane in Minneapolis, there was a bunch of volunteers and they were all just happy we were there. I mean, Minnesota people are just great. I met so many great people in the state of Minnesota, and I even got to meet Governor Walz's wife. She actually awarded all of us with the medals.
So that was really great. So I really appreciate them having us out. I'm just grateful for that. And I'm just so grateful to be part of the USA Games. And it was such an amazing experience.
I can't wait to run it back and do it again in 20, 20, 30.
[00:35:45] Speaker B: Well, we can't wait either.
[00:35:46] Speaker A: I think that probably people would be interested in hearing about some of the goofy things that you did on the golf course. Do you want to tell the story about the 18th hole from the second to last day and then the last day?
[00:36:01] Speaker D: Yes.
[00:36:01] Speaker A: You want to tell those stories?
[00:36:02] Speaker D: Yes. So I'm going to first go off with the third round. It was on the 18th hole. I was putting for a pole. I hit a perfect putt. It goes right where I wanted to, and it hits the hole and it hits the stick. And I thought it was in, but then after that it lipped out. I was about to do a huge fist bump to end off the day with a putt, but unfortunately it missed. And so I did a big flop on the ground and it was so shocking, that putt.
But then the next day I had a similar putt a little shorter. I hit another perfect putt and it went right in the hole. So I did a big celebration because it was the final putt of the tournament. And so that was just so Grateful for that putt went in because I didn't want to have another perfect putt that lips out. So I was just so grateful that putt went in and all of my family was there. My grandparents, my mom, other family.
I'm just so grateful. They came to support me from Wisconsin, Missouri, Minnesota, Texas.
[00:37:10] Speaker B: I love it. Well, and it sounds also Peyton like to me, the thing that makes me the happiest is that you enjoyed the process, right? And enjoyed the journey. Took it all in. It wasn't overwhelming. I mean, it might have been overwhelming at points, but you really enjoyed.
[00:37:23] Speaker D: It was one of the best trips I've ever been on in my life and by far the best tournament that I was at. All of the volunteers were so nice.
All of the people I met were so nice and just so grateful we were there. And the golf course was nice. Everyone at the tournament, all of the rules officials were great. I had a great experience and I can't wait to run it back in 2020.
[00:37:49] Speaker A: It was so beautiful how every team from every state in the United States came to be represented. And these are competitive athletes. They were selected. They're good athletes. They do well in their unique sports. They were there to win. They were there to get gold. They balanced their aggressive. Let's go for gold. With also an incredible championing the person that's competing against them. I've never seen it so beautifully. I'm going to do everything I can to succeed, which is great. Let's fan that flame. Let's champion that. But at the same time, they were just as excited and joyful and encouraging of their competitor that did well. I mean, sometimes we think that those are mutually exclusive, that we have to just be for us or just for Texas, just for Tech Team Texas. But I think that that's something that the Special Olympics teaches us, is that we can do both. We can be our best and challenge ourselves to do our absolute best in competition while still being respectful and championing the other person and celebrating with them when they make a great play or make a great putt or a great shot. And so I think that that's something that I took away. Peyton did a wonderful job with that. That's one of the things that's a part of him as the Peyton Manning Spirit Award was given to him because he wanted to travel to every single tournament, cheer on the guys that beat him out of a spot, to let them know that he was with them and that he was their friend and he wanted to. He wanted them to do their best.
[00:39:28] Speaker B: What A great life lesson. I mean, just not only in sports, because you're right, I don't know that we see a lot of that. You know, we could see more of it and just in life in general, like you can still want to succeed, but it doesn't have to be at the expense of others.
[00:39:41] Speaker D: Yeah, yeah, for sure.
[00:39:42] Speaker B: Wow. Wonderful. Okay, I feel like I could talk to you both for hours. My last question's to you both. Peyton, if someone was listening right now, a parent or another self alpha advocate, maybe someone with autism or another diagnosis, and they were nervous or not sure if they should try Special Olympics, what piece of advice would you give them?
[00:40:00] Speaker D: Special Olympics will help you athletes with anything that's needed. Special Olympics will always be there for you. All of the athletes. Doesn't matter what state, what gender, doesn't matter. None of that. Just keep striding. You just gotta, gotta compete. But everyone will be there for you. Doesn't matter what your disability is. And it's all about inclusion. I just so grateful for Special Olympics. But yeah, for the new people. I want you guys to join Special Olympics. It's by far the best group that I've been a part of. I just want everyone to be a part of the team and just to meet everyone.
[00:40:43] Speaker B: Just to try it, right?
[00:40:44] Speaker D: Yeah, just to try.
[00:40:45] Speaker B: Just go try.
[00:40:46] Speaker D: Just go try it. You could go to the USA Games, you could go to the Woolwood Games, all of that.
[00:40:51] Speaker B: And dad, for you, a slightly different question, which I ask all parents on this podcast. If there was one piece of advice you would give to a parent of a newly diagnosed child, what would that piece of advice be?
[00:41:02] Speaker A: The greatest source of hope for us was very quickly getting connected to the special needs community. There are a lot of other parents out there probably saw when they had their kiddo and they thought about their future, they envisioned it a particular way and then they recognize that there are some challenges or some delays and then there's a diagnosis and then they're trying to re envision their life with a special needs kid. And that's really scary. We all feel unprepared for being parents. Just generally when you add a special needs diagnosis into the mix, it's more when we were able to start hanging out with and getting to know, building friendships with the larger special needs community. Other parents that are navigating very similar. Every child is unique. You are navigating some similar challenges, you're finding resources.
You might think that you've hit dead ends at certain points until you talk to someone else and they Say, but yeah, we came up against that question or that seeming dead end.
But then we learned about this. There are people out there who have great hearts that are trying to do their very best to provide resources for special needs kids to take their next step. That's their calling. That's what God put them on this earth to do. And that's one of the main reasons why Peyton is sitting here today is it's the collection of so many different people that have their fingerprints on on him. In addition to my wife and I connecting to the community of families and parents, connecting to all of the various resources that are there of people called to serve and shape and champion our special needs kids.
[00:42:51] Speaker B: I love that. I love that because I always say autism can be very isolating and it be easy for parents to just sort of stop trying to connect with others.
[00:43:00] Speaker D: Right.
[00:43:00] Speaker B: Out of fear of judgment, fear of dead ends, fear, you know, someone else's child might be doing better in some forms. Right. And so I've seen a lot of families over the years that then just tend to isolate and it's just. No, you got to push through.
[00:43:12] Speaker D: Right.
[00:43:12] Speaker B: And keep making those connections. Peyton, do you have any other advice for someone else who might be listening, who might have autism or there another diagnosis? As far as some things you've learned in life or what piece of advice would you give?
[00:43:24] Speaker D: Life is tough, but you can make it through. You can just get involved like I am in a bunch of social groups. Make sure, like join a sports team, join like theater or choir, whatever that passions you. And you will make it through, I promise you.
[00:43:46] Speaker B: Wonderful. So now onto the most important things where we can find you both, especially Peyton, on Instagram. So, dad, you are the senior pastor at Kringwood Christian Church, correct?
[00:43:56] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:43:57] Speaker B: You can tell you definitely have a natural gift for speaking. You're wonderful. Where can people find you if parents want to reach out and talk to you or learn more?
[00:44:05] Speaker A: I've been pastor for 12 years at Kingwood Christian, right in the heart of Kingwood. My email address is a great way to contact me. Just C mattinglywcc.org, but that's available on our website.
We would love to be a resource. My wife and I have been the beneficiaries of such wonderful people. We could not have been served better by humble isd. And so we're huge fans and we've navigated a lot of the resources as well. And so we would be happy just conversation partners with anyone. That's whether they're starting out or they're several years in or maybe they've hit a roadblock or whatever it is. We'd love to be any help that we can.
[00:44:50] Speaker B: Wonderful. And Peyton, where can we find you? What's your handle? Right? Is that what it's called?
[00:44:55] Speaker D: Okay, my Instagram handle is Golfer Mattingly on Instagram, but also I have a Gmail account. It's Peyton mattinglymail.com. yeah, those are the two ways you can contact me. I post every week about golf and a bunch of trips I've been on. And so right Now I'm at 900 followers, but my goal is to get to 5,000 by the end of the year.
[00:45:21] Speaker B: Okay, you hear that, listeners? Our goal is to get to 5,000, so we will definitely post his Instagram handle in the show notes. Chad and Peyton, you guys are such inspirations. I'm so excited to have you all sitting here. I'm hoping, I know that this has been an inspiration to others. I mean, Peyton, you were, your parents were told you were going to be non verbal. Yes. You've definitely surpassed that. You are incredible. Keep on being an inspiration for others because I know you are. We just need to get you two out there and and and sharing your story. So thank you both for being here.
[00:45:50] Speaker D: Thank you so much. I really enjoyed the this opportunity in. I hope you have a great rest of your day.
[00:45:55] Speaker B: If you need help or resources, whether you're a parent, someone on the spectrum, a business or a community organization who want to know more or need help or want to share resources, please reach out to
[email protected] thanks for joining us
[00:46:11] Speaker A: on Shining through inspiring Forces of Altus. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow us, leave a review and share it with us who want to celebrate neurodiversity. Until next time, keep Shining.
