A New York-based financial company announced Thursday it will donate $10,000 to Special Olympics Missouri - part of a $520,000 donation from the company to be divided among U.S. Special Olympics programs.
Voya Financial Inc. is a financial, retirement, investment and insurance company, and it's giving the money after the success of its "Invest in Something Special" social media campaign.
During the weeklong campaign, Special Olympic athletes were encouraged to share their goals beyond sport on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, according to a news release.
Voya pledged to donate $1 for every like, share and comment on the athletes' stories tagged with #InvestInSomethingSpecial between Nov. 13-19 - up to $500,000. After 940,000 people participated on social media, Voya raised its donation to $520,000 to share among the 52 U.S. Special Olympics programs.
"The personal stories of these Special Olympics athletes touched people around the world, as we saw from the overwhelming response on social media," Voya Chairman and CEO Rodney O. Martin Jr. said in the news release.
"Nearly 21 million families in the U.S. have at least one member with a disability, and through our donation to Special Olympics, as well as other initiatives like Voya Cares, we're working to raise awareness of the unique challenges faced by these Americans and how we can create a more supportive and inclusive environment for them, as well as their caregivers," Martin added.
"Every day at Special Olympics Missouri, we work to ensure that people with intellectual disabilities are recognized, accepted and valued as members of our communities," Mark Musso, president and chief executive officer of Special Olympics Missouri, said in the news release. "We are grateful to Voya for supporting this important work and for helping to raise awareness of the strength and determination that Special Olympics athletes bring to our community."
Special Olympics Missouri has more than 15,300 athletes who participate in 21 Olympic-type sports throughout the state.
One of those athletes is Derek Sandbothe, 36, of Jefferson City.
Sandbothe is involved in the program's Athlete Leadership program. He's a communications major and said he's preparing to graduate in May.
"I love doing that," he said of the public speaking he's been doing for 10 years. He said he enjoys speaking about why he got involved with Special Olympics and how it's changed his life.
"I'm going to take that and give that knowledge I've learned to other students," he said, adding he talks about how to give speeches "in ways that will influence others to get involved with the program."
He added he will teach a speaking course - Global Messenger II - in March at the University of Missouri.
Special Olympics Missouri broke ground in May on its new Training for Life Campus on Christy Drive in Jefferson City with the hope to have facilities open for use by fall 2018.