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Fredonia schools, above, have unified sports teams in the area as well as Silver Creek. Dunkirk approved a measure recently.

After an enthusiastic presentation by Section 6’s unified sports chairman, the Dunkirk Board of Education agreed to join the program.

Speaking at a board workshop session, Doug Ames called the mix of special and general education students on basketball courts and bowling alleys “something you’re going to absolutely love and embrace. …This is so rewarding to have for your community.

“Honest to God, it’ll bring tears to your eyes when you see some of the kids play basketball or bowl,” he added.

Ames said Dunkirk would be the 43rd school with a unified sports program in Section 6, which has 98 schools. Neighboring Fredonia joined in 2019.

Basketball is a spring sport and bowling a winter sport in the unified program. Each special education student is paired with a regular education student.

Asked if it was too late for Dunkirk to join this season, Ames said to laughter, “I’ve already got you penciled in. Not in red ink, it’s in pencil.” He added that he is traveling to the Cattaraugus-Little Valley and East Aurora school districts in the next week to give similar presentations asking them to join the program.

He noted that the program gives students with physical and intellectual challenges “the opportunity to put on that Marauder uniform and get that varsity letter.” It offers “authentic, meaningful involvement and competition, just like general ed students.”

Board President David Damico promised to formalize the start of the program in Dunkirk with a resolution at the next regular meeting on Oct. 12. He asked for a straw poll of board members Tuesday and all seven indicated they would like to have the program. Another question, as to whether the district should do basketball, bowling or both, was met with yells of “both” by the board members.

A pleased Ames then told a story of a student who gained so much confidence in himself from the program, he wound up graduating a year early and going to college when he should have been a senior.

Promising to help Athletic Director Al Gens implement the program as much as possible, he declared, “You won’t regret it. You’ll have a good time. Two thumbs up.”