Shannon Schafer, director of Inclusion Sports Performance Training, never intended to direct one of the only gyms for special needs children and teens in the Mercer County area. Thirty years ago she was running Schafer School of Gymnastics in Lawrenceville.
“A parent came in looking for recreational gymnastics for her child who’s on the spectrum. She had already tried a few other places, and nobody would work with her child. So she came in one day, I happened to be there, and she told me her story and her journey. At the time, I didn’t have any direct teaching experience with [neurodivergent students]. So, I told her I would give it a shot!” Schafer says.
Schafer, a mother herself, says “I told myself, ‘What would I want someone to do if my child had difficulties?’”
Inclusion Sports offers classes for special needs children and teens in gymnastics, swimming, cycling, functional movement, as well as summer camps, birthday parties, and home services. In addition, Inclusion Sports is a Special Olympics Community Partner.
Schafer says that she doesn’t believe she has a ‘knack’ for teaching special needs children. “There was a need for it, there was an impact that was made on me, there was an impact that was made on that family, and so I just felt like I needed to do more.”
Schafer adds, “Once one person started with me, the word just kind of got out through parents, through teachers, through therapists, and that’s when I think everyone realized, there is a need. And that need is still there, on many levels.”
Parents of students and volunteers alike have had an emphatic response.
Katerina Sebestova, the mother of a student at Inclusion Sports, says, “I believe [I saw a change in my daughter]. She’s very social. We are lucky that she’s very social, and she can handle big crowds and stuff, but with [her struggles] I’ve definitely seen an improvement.”
Sebestova says, “Oh my god we love [Shannon], there is no word for it. She’s amazing.”
Erin Noble, mother of student Evan Noble, says, “We started doing swim lessons at Schafer’s pre-covid. We knew Shannon, because she was the one who evaluated Evan for a swim group.” Noble further explained that the pandemic halted swimming participation for a time, before they recently gave Inclusion Sports a shot.
Evan has only participated in two practices at Inclusion Sports so far.
Noble says, “He loved [last week’s practice]. That’s all he talked about when we got home, and he was talking about it all week, wanting to go to bowling. He’s definitely excited to come. I’m seeing a lot of independence that he maybe doesn’t have in other realms of life.”
Sixteen year old Nicholas Shenouda, a volunteer and older brother of a student, says “[The job] feels very rewarding, to be able to help those, especially like my brother, who are unable to help themselves.”
Inclusion Sports has many activities and opportunities in the works, such as a bowling competition, as well as a polar bear plunge set for February.
“That’s a thing I never thought I would do, but as I tell all my parents, I’d do just about anything for my athletes, even if that means jumping into freezing cold water.” Says Schafer.
Inclusion Sports has been developing a swim team as well, which will be ready come December.
Schafer says, “We’ve been teaching [the students] how to swim, because that’s a challenge…[Many students] that have special needs have a hard time learning how to swim. I’ve been teaching them to swim for a while, progressing to the next level, and they’re now ready.”
Looking to the future, Schafer aims to have locations in multiple communities. She says, “I’ve had people come to me from Brooklyn…and they drive all that way for a half-hour lesson. People come to me from Parsippany, Piscataway, Plainfield, Edison, and to me…they shouldn’t have to drive all that way for me to provide a half hour lesson, when it should be in their community.”
When asked about the best part of the job, Schafer said, “To see the joy on the faces of my students when they learn to ride a bike for the first time, see a parent cry when their child can swim, or conquer a fear, or walk on a balance bar without falling… it’s just those tiny little moments that the average person takes for granted, that I relish in.”
