Arca Continental Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages doesn’t have to solicit employees to volunteer for events and fundraisers related to Special Olympics Texas (SOT), which the company sponsors.
“They are always asking, ‘When is this happening? Don’t forget me,’” says Renee Downey, CCSWB Director of Sales and Operations for the Houston area. “We don’t have to push.” CCSWB creates a culture of community engagement, with a couple hundred associates volunteering across the state every year, and 10-12 company leaders competing in the annual golf tournament.
SOT coordinates athletic training and competitions statewide for children and adults with limitations in cognitive functioning and skills, including Down syndrome, autism and other differences.
Downey, a longtime supporter, joined the charity’s board this year. She follows in the footsteps of CCSWB Vice President and General Manager Market Unit, Susanne Brady-Lusk, who is an emeritus board member and immediate past chair.
Dallas-based CCSWB, which supplies beverages to 31 million people throughout Texas and parts of Oklahoma, Arkansas, and New Mexico, has been a major booster of SOT since 2017, when the company was acquired by beverage giant Arca Continental in Monterrey, Mexico — and before that as well.
In fact, The Coca-Cola Company has co-sponsored Special Olympics since Eunice Kennedy Shriver founded the nonprofit in 1968. Special Olympics Texas formed in 1969.
“Being the local bottler, we’re actively engaged in the community, and Special Olympics Texas is one of our focuses,” Downey says. “It brings such joy to me.”
CCSWB just increased its annual donation from $95,000 to $125,000 to promote the nonprofit’s continued growth and committed to sponsorship through 2031. It helps in other ways, too.
At SOT’s annual Summer Games and Winter Games, CCSWB sets up a “Champions Lounge” that is exclusively for athletes and has a popular karaoke stage. Downey describes it as “a place where they can be themselves.” Having a place like that means a lot to athletes like Shelby Day, 34, of Katy, TX, who has a rare, unnamed chromosomal abnormality.
“The Champions Lounge is a cool place to hang out and meet people,” Day says. Day looks forward to reuniting with people she’s met through the program. Over 14 years, she has earned 150-plus Special Olympics medals in equestrian sports, golf, swimming, basketball, bowling, and track and field.
“You get to compete with other delegations and make friends with other delegations, too,” Day says. “It’s a lot of fun.”
Dozens of CCSWB volunteers serve free Coca-Cola beverages to athletes and assist with timekeeping, documenting scores and other tasks.
As the father of a young child with special needs, Alexander Alvarado, sales execution manager at CCSWB, finds the work especially meaningful.
“The goal of SOT to empower athletes with special needs hits close to home for me,” Alvarado says. “Watching the older athletes progress and excel gives me hope for when my son, Leo, is old enough to participate. Sports have always been a big part of my life, and it’s something that Leo and I have bonded over. His love for football and soccer is something we share deeply. Knowing that CCSWB is a major sponsor of the Special Olympics makes me incredibly proud to work here. This is a company that doesn’t just talk about values — they truly live them by supporting initiatives that mean so much to families like mine.”
The company is also introducing a new one-day fundraising event for CCSWB employees in Dallas, Houston, McAllen, El Paso, Austin and San Antonio. The event, Top Golf Pro-Am, takes place on Sept. 27. “It will be a friendly competition amongst us internally to see how much money we can raise,” Downey says.
CCSWB also co-sponsors the annual Arca Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages Classic, a fundraising golf tournament set for Nov. 4 at the Woodlands Country Club in The Woodlands, where Special Olympics athletes putt on behalf of some of the competitors. The tournament has generated more than $2 million for SOT since 2005.
In addition, CCSWB supports golf fundraisers in Corpus Christi, Galveston and Beaumont.
SOT has 26,000 athletes registered statewide and 7,535 In Greater Dallas. It serves more than 60,000 people in Texas, including family members, and operates some 226 tournaments annually.
People with intellectual disabilities are eligible to join SOT at eight years old; its Young Athletes program introduces basic skills like running, kicking and throwing to kids aged two to seven.
The organization also offers educational instruction on leadership, health and nutrition, preparation for adult living, fitness and safety.
Day, for instance, took the leadership training and became a Sargent Shriver Global Messenger. She addressed 400 people at a fundraiser and visited Washington, D.C., to lobby U.S. senators and representatives on behalf of the nonprofit.