Preparations are well under way for the 2004 West Virginia Special Olympics Summer Games June 4-6 at West Virginia University, and organizers are once again looking to the community for help in making sure success of the games continues.

We are now seeking about 1,500 volunteers from the local area to help run the Summer Games,said Bobbie Bodkin, volunteer coordinator.Each year, the event increases in excitement as more and more special athletes compete. This is a wonderful opportunity for residents, WVU employees and students to get involved in a worthwhile and rewarding community event.

Several hundred athletes from most of West Virginia’s 55 counties are expected to participate in events ranging from bocce and swimming to track and field.

Volunteers of all ages help athletes get to and from the games, provide encouragement, keep score, register teams, help run extracurricular activities in the Olympic Village, provide first aid, assist with opening and closing ceremonies and generally just help out in all aspects of the competition and pageantry,Bodkin said.

Opening ceremonies, as well as other activities, will be announced later this spring, but Bodkin is encouraging Morgantown and area residents to put the evening of Friday, June 4, on their calendars to welcome the athletes in style and demonstrate pride in hosting these special activities.

Spectator attendance at the opening ceremony is especially important to the athletes,she said.

To help with the games, volunteers must complete an application form available at

http://www.wvu.edu/specialolympics/The volunteer forms are available in two formats:

an online version or a PDF /downloadable version. Volunteers are encouraged to use the online version, if possible. For people without Internet access, application forms can be obtained by calling Bodkin at 304-293-5489 or the Special Olympics toll-free hotline at 1-888-988-2269. Deadline to complete the form is May 24.

This is the seventh consecutive year that WVU has hosted the West Virginia Special Olympics Summer Games in Morgantown.