Blue Valley Recreation News

On any given week, Leawood resident Nan Kanter runs from soccer practice to bowling, from volleyball to golf and to several other sports in between. No, she’s not shuttling her children to each of these sports. Kanter’s two children are grown. But as director of Blue Valley Special Olympics, she has become like family to the 100-plus athletes who participate in the program – and they to her.

For the Kanter family, which includes husband Sid, 33-year-old son Michael and 30-year-old son Matt, who lives in England with his wife and two young daughters, Blue Valley Special Olympics is a family affair. Nan and Sid set the program in motion 21 years ago to provide opportunities for Michael when he was younger. And because Special Olympics knows no age, Michael still enjoys this athletic outlet.

“Today, Michael is a sports fanatic. He knows more about sports than anything else,” says Nan, a former special education teacher. “But it wasn’t always that way. There was a time when he had no interest until he met former Royals baseball player Jamie Quirk. I don’t know what Jamie said to him, but it changed his life.”

The Kanters started Blue Valley Special Olympics with just 10 athletes and one sport – basketball. Today, the program boasts 13 sports and nearly 150 registered athletes. And like a family, the program has expanded in other ways over the years. Specifically, Blue Valley Recreation, which administers the program, now offers classes and outings for the special needs community under the classification of its “Special Pops” group. Whether it’s a hayride under the stars or a lights-of-the-city Christmas tour, individuals with special needs can share in all the fun and excitement this area has to offer.

“We started Special Pops because not everyone enjoys sports. But they do enjoy being with their friends and socializing,” says Nan. “We have such good support from Blue Valley Recreation’s Executive Director Steven Baysinger. His attitude is that this is one program you don’t mess with!”

Yet, while the Kanter family spends considerable nights and weekends together involved in Special Olympics, they have a full life outside of Nan’s work. Specifically, the family loves to travel, whether it’s to their second home in Venice, Fla., or to Chicago to visit friends. In fact, Sid says travel has been one of the contributing factors in Michael’s development over the years.

“He’s been to Europe, Australia, and everywhere in between,” says Sid, who retired from his 25-year career as a tennis pro at Leawood’s Homestead Country Club, and is now a part-time business and entrepreneur instructor at Penn Valley Community College.

Michael is a self-proclaimed movie buff, as well, with a collection of more than 3,000 titles. As a Wal-Mart employee, Michael takes advantage of his employee discount in the store’s electronics department, he says.

In their spare time, the Kanters enjoy all the parks and restaurants of Leawood, including Bravo and Paddy O’Quiggly’s. Yet, it’s the joy they get in building lasting relationships with other families that is the most rewarding for Nan, Sid and Michael. And, in sitting down to talk with them, it’s a sentiment that appears to be genuine.

“I love what I do and I’m very fortunate to have support from my husband and son,” says Nan.