The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

Shawn Ahmann was honored Friday at AmericanWest Bank's Customer Appreciation Day in Dayton as their Special Olympic athlete representative. American- West Bank has partnered with the Special Olympics and was pleased to have a local athlete represent the bank on area marketing posters.

The local Special Olympics team includes athletes from Dayton, Waitsburg, Prescott and Walla Walla who compete in bowling, skiing and track. Between 20 and 40 athletes compete, depending on the sport.

Ahmann has been involved in Special Olympics for over ten years, competing in all three events. Shawn skiis with the Blue Mountain Bombers at an advanced level, competing in slalom, giant slalom and downhill racing. In track, Ahmann runs the 100-meter dash, the 200-meter walk or run andthemens4X100relay.He also competes in the shot-put.

Friend and fellow Special Olympics athlete, Rachael Grad- wahl, attended the event in support of Ahmann. Gradwahl competes in bowling, intermediate level ski- ing events and track. On the Blue Mountain Bombers track team, Gradwahl competes in the 100 and 200-meter dashes, the softball throwandthegirls4X100relay.

This year both Ahmann and Gradwahl advanced to the state meet in Fort Lewis, WA where over 2,700 athletes competed in soccer, weightlifting, cycling, aquatics and the most popular event, track and field. Gradwahl walked away with silver medals in softball and the 100-meter dash while Ahmann took gold in the 200-meter walk.

"For Shawn, the best thing about Special Olympics is the friends he's made and the feeling of camaraderie he enjoys when he's with them. He loves to com- pete, but it's really all about being with his friends and having a great time," said Ahmann's mother, Audrey.