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Volunteer Superheroes Needed for Annual Special Olympics Family Festival

August 5, 2015 – Consolidated Communications is looking for volunteers to help out at its 31st annual Special Olympics Family Festival (SOFF) on Saturday, Sept. 20. In keeping with this year’s superhero theme, volunteers don’t need to have super human strength but rather a supersized heart!

Celeste Webb, the 2014 SOFF Chairperson, said the SOFF committee selected a superhero theme because everyone can relate to the excitement of superheroes like Superman, Wonder Woman or Spiderman.  

“I am super excited about our ‘Superfriends’ theme and can’t wait for September 20 to roll around because I know our Athletes are going to enjoy the day we’re planning just for them!” said Webb. “This is a theme everyone is familiar with and can rally around.”

Webb and members of the SOFF Planning Committee are hoping local residents will be just as excited and eager to volunteer for the event.

“Our need for Friend-For-A-Day volunteers is always great, but even more so this year because SOFF is the same weekend as Eastern Illinois University’s Parent’s Weekend.  In past years, EIU students have constituted the majority of our ‘Friends for a Day.’ This year we will need many more community volunteers to be a ‘Friend,’ so we are encouraging everyone who is willing to sign up,” she explained. “Spending time at SOFF as a Friend-For-A-Day is one of the most rewarding experiences you can have.”

Volunteers are also needed to serve as workers during the event, serving lunch, overseeing games and activities and working in registration.

Unlike traditional Special Olympic games, SOFF is a non-competitive event centered on games and activities in a carnival-type atmosphere for pre-registered Special Olympic Athletes from Regions 8, 9, 10 and 17. The day begins with opening ceremonies and a parade and continues with many games and activities including softball throw, basketball shoot, dunk tank, ring toss and bowling, just to name a few.
 
The festival is not open to the public. Only those who register as a volunteer can participate, and all volunteers must be 16 or older. SOFF is also a non-smoking event.

Local residents who are interested in signing up as a SOFF volunteer can go to the company’s Web site at www.consolidated.com and download a registration form by clicking on About Us, Community Involvement, SOFF. Forms are also available for pick up at our local Communication Center at 1321 Charleston Avenue, Mattoon. To request a registration form, email SOFF@consolidated.com or call 800-434-SOFF. You can also learn more about SOFF and watch a video on Facebook at Special Olympics Family Festival.

SOFF was founded by Consolidated Communications in 1984, and continues to be sponsored and organized by its employees along with representatives from Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center and First Mid-Illinois Bank & Trust.

About Consolidated Communications
Consolidated Communications (NASDAQ: CNSL) provides business and broadband communications services across its 11-state service area. For more than a century, the Company has consistently provided innovative, reliable, high-quality products and services over an expanded fiber optic network.  Consolidated Communications offers a wide range of communications solutions including: High-Speed Internet, Digital TV, Data, Phone, managed and cloud services and wireless backhaul. Learn more about Consolidated Communications at consolidated.com.

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