A high school friendship changed the course of Kevin Ahrens’ life.
Ahrens played varsity baseball while a student at Lyons Township High School. His coach, Terry Sullivan, asked him to help the team’s manager, a student with special needs, learn some tasks, such as how to organize baseballs and where to store equipment.
That partnership blossomed into a friendship that shaped Ahrens’ career as a special needs teacher at Downers Grove South High School.
On St. Patrick’s Day, Ahrens, now a coach himself, led the DGS Special Olympics basketball team to victory at the state championship.
“It was a magical year,” said Ahrens, of La Grange, who began coaching the team this fall.
Every single player got to play for at least part of each game during the regular season, Ahrens said, and together they carried the team to a 26-5 record through the post-season.
“Everybody got to play, everybody contributed, everybody did a great job,” he said.
Players worked tirelessly, Ahrens said, no matter how tough things got.
“Whatever I asked them to do because I thought it would make us a better team, they did it to the best of their ability,” he said, “and this allowed us to get better and better as the season went on, finally hitting our peak at the state tournament.”
The DGS student body came out to support the team with a pack-the-place rally prior to the championship at Illinois State University and raised almost $700 during lunchtime fundraisers to help offset the team’s travel costs.
Staff also supported the team by working games and helping the multineeds students get to practice during eighth period.
“That’s the thing about Downers Grove South,” Ahrens said. “I think it’s an amazing school and they really support the special services program.”
The school also celebrated the victory last week with a rally.
Ahrens has taught at DGS for nine years and, along with assuming his role as Special O basketball coach, took the lead in August of the school’s job training program for special education students.
“What they get out of it is real-life work experience,” he said of the program that places students in businesses such as Ikea, T.J. Maxx and Family Video for several hours each week. “We’re training them to be part of the community and have a role and have a job and hopefully be independent some day.”
It’s not unusual for the shops to hire the students full-time once they graduate, Ahrens said.
As for the friendship that set Ahrens career path in motion, 20 years later he still considers the man one of his best friends. Just two weeks ago Ahrens took him out for his birthday.
And the true gift is how the impact of their friendship has, through the years, touched hundreds of students’ lives.
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