By JAMEY HELGESON

Did you know that if you put 13 quarters side by side they would equal a foot? And how many of you remember from your school days that there are 5,280 feet in a mile?

These two trivia facts are the focus of a summer campaign that we launched in June to help support our Special Olympics program, called “A Mile Of Quarters!” For every $3.25 you can purchase a foot in our campaign or 10 feet equals $32.50, 15 feet equals $48.75, 30 feet equals $100 and 50 feet will cost you $162.50. We’re sure you are starting to see the pattern here.

We are hoping that you will support this campaign yourselves as well as spreading the word to your friends, family members, neighbors, co-workers or any organization you are a part of. For every $3.25 raised we will put a decal of a foot in our windows at The Arc so you can watch our progress. Send your donations to The Arc at 401 Second Ave. NE, Austin, MN 55912. We will be accepting donations until the end of August.

Athletes with disabilities up for ESPN awards

Athletes with cerebral palsy, spina bifida and blindness are joining sports megastars Dirk Nowitzki, Shaun White and Serena Williams on the list of nominees for ESPN’s annual ESPY awards.

Five standout athletes are nominated in each of two disability-specific categories, one honoring men and one for women. They include Steve Wampler, who last year became the first person with cerebral palsy to scale Yosemite National Park’s El Capitan, in addition to a triathlete who’s blind and a world-champion wheelchair racer with spina bifida.

Winners of the ESPY awards, honoring the best in sports for 2011, will be announced during a live show July 13 hosted by Saturday Night Live’s Seth Meyers on ESPN.

U.S. falls short in poll on disability acceptance

Most Americans believe that their communities are good places for people with intellectual disabilities, but a new Gallup survey finds this country is not as accepting as many European nations.

In the global survey of people in 112 countries, over 80 percent of Americans said their communities were good places for those with intellectual disabilities. However, there were higher rates of perceived acceptance in 14 other countries, including Canada and several in Europe.

The Dutch were most likely to say that their communities were good places, with 91 percent of respondents in The Netherlands receptive to people with intellectual disabilities.

Meanwhile, people in the former Soviet Union and Asia were least likely to say their communities were good places for people in this group.

The findings are based on telephone and face-to-face interviews with people ages 15 and older that were conducted in 2010 by Gallup in conjunction with Special Olympics.

Levels of educational achievement did appear to play a role in whether or not people said their communities were good places for those with intellectual disabilities. Age and gender, however, did not make a big difference, according to Gallup.

Upcoming Events:
• Monday:  Special Olympics softball practice at Todd Park, 6:30 to 8 p.m.
• Tuesday: People First Aktion Club meeting, 6:30 to 8 p.m.
• Wednesday: Newsletter assembly, 2 to 4 p.m.; Creative arts, 6:30 to 8 p.m.
• Thursday: Special Olympics softball practice at Todd Park, 6:30 to 8 p.m.