Break the Barriers Celebrates "The Olympic Spirit" at Annual Fundraising Dinner Honoring Special Olympians, Paralympians and Olympians

    FRESNO, CA, April 17, 2009 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Break the Barriers, Inc., the nation's premier Ability Center, today announced that it will celebrate "The Olympic Spirit" at its 11th annual fundraising dinner, "Breaking Barriers for Children," to be held at the Fresno Convention Center's Valdez Hall, on Saturday, Apr. 25, 2009 at 6 p.m. This year the organization will honor athletes Kathy Mullen, Jared Schmidt, Brent Poppen and Rick Merlo.

"We are celebrating "The Olympic Spirit" by inviting the generous community of Greater Fresno, that has supported us over the years, to join us on Apr. 25," said Co-Founder and Executive Director Deby Hergenrader. "On that night they will meet some of the key people who continue to inspire us every day with their unfailing spirit, and enjoy thrilling performances by our international traveling team "The Barrier Breakers" and other teams.

The honorees for this year's event include:

Kathy Mullen, 48, was Fresno County's first Special Olympian. Even though Kathy was born with Down syndrome, her parents, Ken and Carmie, believed all of their children had special gifts to share with the world and they were determined to give Kathy the opportunity to share her gifts and talents with others. Kathy's gift was hugs and smiles, but they soon discovered her talent in gymnastics, swimming, bowling and ice skating would change attitudes and perceptions of people with Down syndrome. Kathy was the only Special Olympian to receive state, national and world gold medals in four different sports. Kathy was the inspiration for Break the Barriers' founders, Steve and Deby Hergenrader. Kathy was on the first "Barrier Breaker" team and still performs on occasion.

Jared Schmidt, 27, has participated in several sports during his 19 years with Special Olympics. He represented the U.S. Special Olympic Team in Ireland in 2003 winning 6 medals, and then in February returned from the World Games in Idaho, winning three silver medals in Alpine Skiing. Special Olympics has enabled Jared to train, compete, meet lots of new people and travel extensively. He has served as a Global Messenger for Special Olympics International, and participates in several sports including swimming, basketball, softball, soccer, golf, power lifting, gymnastics and alpine skiing. Jared is a key team member of the International Barrier Breaker Traveling Team, always ready to try something new, and is a model of encouragement for his fellow team members.

Brent Poppen is an amazing athlete, who at the age of sixteen broke his neck in a wrestling accident at a church camp. Then, as a quadriplegic, Brent realized he had two choices; to be angry at the world for what had happened to him, or not be afraid of dreaming again and working hard to make those dreams a reality. Brent chose to dream and not be afraid to fail. The Paralympics has enabled Brent to travel throughout the United States, Greece, Sweden, China and is currently training for the 2012 games in London. In 2004, his perseverance and determination lead to receiving a Bronze medal representing the United States at the Paralympics held in Athens, Greece. He competes in wheelchair rugby and wheelchair tennis, and has received multiple medals in each sport. Brent made a decision that he could bring encouragement, hope and inspiration to others by sharing his story. Besides his passion for rugby and tennis, he is an accomplished speaker who shares the story of his life to help motivate people to dream and overcome their own obstacles.

Rick Merlo became involved in water polo through his older brother, Mark, who was a four-year player with the University of California, Irvine (UCI) Anteaters and an Academic All-American during the 2000-01 seasons. Rick earned numerous titles as an outstanding water polo player while at Buchanan High School, at UCI, and continued his career playing club, international and then professional water polo. Because of water polo Rick has traveled across the United States, Australia, Greece, Canada and South Korea. But his lifelong dream was to compete in the Olympic Games. His dream was realized in 2008 as a member of the Silver medalist U.S. Water Polo Team at the Beijing Olympics. After spending some time with family in Fresno, Rick plans to go back to Europe to pick up his professional water polo career.

Sponsors include:

Gold Medal Sponsors:
Cross Resources Inc.
Linda and Bill Smittcamp

Silver Medal Sponsors:
Maxco
Wells Fargo
Allshouse Family
Fowler Packing
Pacific Choice
McCormick Barstow LLP Attorneys at Law

Bronze Medal Sponsors:
The Herwaldt Foundation
Jim and Linda O'Neal
Hergenrader Family
Jerry and Lynda Seibert
Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management
Educational Employees Credit Union
Fresno County Office of Education
Diamond Learning Center
OK Produce
Blackwell & Glines Marketing

Individual tickets are $75, and sponsorships are tables of 10. Tax-deductible tickets may be purchased at Break the Barriers, located at 8555 N. Cedar and Teague. Please call 559.432.6292 for more information.

About Break the Barriers
Fresno-based Break the Barriers is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization established in 1985. Through sports, arts, aquatics, health and fitness programs for the able bodied and the disabled, Break the Barriers is recognized as a "National Role Model for Inclusion" by the U.S. Department of Special Education, acknowledged throughout California, the United States, and abroad for its equity advocacy. For more information, go to www.breakthebarriers.org.

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