Sergeant volunteers with special organization

  • Published
  • By Deborah Silliman Wolfe
  • 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. --  The passion Staff Sgt. Amanda Buffington has for volunteering with the Phoenix area Special Olympics is visible all over her face when she talks about her experiences.

"The first event I did in 2004 was at the state level," said a grinning Sergeant Buffington, base Special Olympics volunteer coordinator. "I was working the food tent handing out sandwiches, and all the kids were coming through and were so excited to show off their medals. There was one boy who came up and before I could even ask him what he wanted, he said, 'I won a medal!' He was so excited, and that kind of enthusiasm is just contagious."

Sergeant Buffington, 56th Equipment Maintenance Squadron Air Ground Equipment journeyman, has been enthusiastically heading up Luke Air Force Base volunteer coordination for the Phoenix Special Olympics since December 2006 when the position was handed down to her from co-worker Master Sgt. Bob Cook. She works with Phyllis Kelly, Phoenix Special Olympics director and city parks and recreation employee who is in charge of Phoenix's adaptive service program.

"Having Luke volunteers is wonderful because we can just call Amanda as a contact point, tell her our volunteer needs and they are here. It's done and finished," Mrs. Kelly said. "Luke volunteers make our job a lot easier and they are always willing to help, will do anything and they enjoy it."

According to Mrs. Kelly, the Phoenix Special Olympics put on about a dozen events throughout the year that special needs school children and adults can participate in. All the teams that participate in the games are either from local schools or adult agencies.
"I try to work at least one event a month myself so that I am not just in the background organizing," Sergeant Buffington said. "I like to see the participants with their positive attitudes. I think a lot more people could take a cue from these kids. For them, it's
not about winning. They are going out there and doing something they like to do.

"It's just amazing the things that some of these kids can do despite whatever problems they may have. It's funny that people still don't see that just because they are different or have a disability, they have abilities too."

Luke volunteers will be helping with Phoenix Special Olympics basketball tournaments next week at Trevor Brown High School in Phoenix. For those interested in volunteering in the future, call Sergeant Buffington at (623) 856-3460.