Wednesday, August 9, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
AFFONSO: Aspen lakes
golf pro provided
clothing, equipment
21
July was warm
and dry in Sisters
Continued from page 1
Lizzie graduated from Sisters
High School in 2003. In the
past she participated in the
Special Olympics in bowling
and basketball.
This year, Lizzie partici-
pated in the Skills Division
of the golf program. It’s
an individual contest that
focuses on the skills of put-
ting, pitching and driving.
Marilyn Rowland, her coach,
has worked with the Special
Olympics golf athletes in
Central Oregon for the past 15
years.
“Lizzie has a natural apti-
tude for hitting the ball,”
Rowland says. “She hasn’t
had a chance to play on the
full course yet.”
The Special Olympics golf
program offers four different
categories, beginning with the
skills competition. In addition,
there is a 9-hole game; 9-hole
partners game; and 18-hole
game.
“There is no cookie-cutter
to people with special needs,”
Rowland said. “We try and
find their strengths and inter-
est — what works for one
individual is not going to
work for another. Some have
never swung a club before;
all they’ve done is putt-putt.
Some will like the skills and
some will not. You try it out,
just like a coat; if it doesn’t
fit you move on to another
sport.”
Those athletes that play
either the 9-hole or 18-hole
course are under the same
rules as the PGA of America
— except they don’t get a
caddy.
“They have to walk the
whole course,” said Rowland.
“They work harder than the
PGA athletes because they are
PHOTO COURTESY ANN MARLAND
Lizzie Affonso of Sisters participated in the Special Olympics in golf.
hauling their own clubs on a
cart. It’s really fun and very
rewarding.”
The Central Oregon team
practices at Awbrey Glen
beginning in April. The ath-
letes meet at the course once
a week and go through a “test-
ing” program to see what their
skills are. Once they have
assessed the athletes’ skill
level they begin practices. The
16-player team this year was
able to play once at six differ-
ent courses throughout Central
Oregon prior to attending the
Regional Games at River’s
Ridge Golf Course in Eugene.
Any athlete who receives
a gold medal at the Regional
Games automatically qualifies
for the state event. Eight par-
ticipants from Central Oregon
attended the state games held
at Trysting Tree Golf Course
in Corvallis.
“The best thing for me at
this time in her life is to build
relationships,” said Lizzie’s
mom. “Relationships with
peers are key. It’s (the Special
Olympics) all supportive; they
Fun Events & Great Food
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6:30 to 8:30 p.m. (Cover by donation)
Barbecue Friday Nights
6 to 8:30 p.m.
Free Open Mic Saturdays
6 to 8 p.m.
541-549-2572 | 250 W. Cascade Ave.
Mon.-Wed. 11 to 4
Thurs. & Fri. 11 to 8:30
Sat. 8 to 8 | Sun. 8 to 5
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all root for each other.”
Lizzie lights up when talk-
ing about her participation in
the State Games. She didn’t
get there on her own. She and
her mother are quick to men-
tion the generous help from
Howie Pruitt, the golf pro at
Aspen Lakes Golf Course
here in Sisters. Pruitt helped
Lizzie prepare and gave her
her very own golf shirt, skort,
and hat to wear.
She proudly displays her
medal and ribbon from the
Regional Games and shows
pictures of the state event.
Lizzie lives at A Home
to Share, a non-profit group
home for people with develop-
mental disabilities, in Sisters.
Her favorite sports are basket-
ball, baseball, tennis and foot-
ball and she loves the Oregon
State University Beavers.
According to preliminary
data received by NOAA’s
National Weather Service in
Pendleton, temperatures at
Sisters averaged warmer than
normal during the month of
July.
The average temperature
was 67.5 degrees, which was
3.2 degrees above normal.
High temperatures averaged
91.2 degrees, which was
6.1 degrees above normal.
The highest was 98 degrees
on July 7. Low tempera-
tures averaged 43.8 degrees,
which was 0.3 degrees above
normal. The lowest was 38
degrees, on July 17.
On 17 days, the tempera-
ture exceeded 90 degrees.
No precipitation was mea-
sured during July — that’s
0.53 inches below normal.
Precipitation this year
has reached 6.70 inches,
which is 1.03 inches below
normal. Since October, the
water year precipitation at
Sisters has been 11.65 inches,
which is 0.96 inches below
normal.
The highest wind gust was
43 mph, which occurred on
July 10.
The outlook for August
from NOAA’s Climate
Prediction Center calls for
above-normal temperatures
and near- to below-normal
precipitation. Normal highs
for Sisters during August are
84.5 degrees and normal lows
are 42.8 degrees. The 30-year
normal precipitation is 0.44
inches.
Taking a dip in the lake...
PHOTO BY GARY MILLER
Nugget photographer Gary Miller captured CL-415 “Super
Scoopers” Canadian-built specialty fire-fighting aircraft that
picked up loads out of Detroit Lake last weekend, fighting the
Whitewater Fire. That blaze has grown to encroach on Sisters
Country trails in the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness and will likely
continue to impact the area with smoke for some time.