During the weekend of August 2-4, 2019, Special Olympics Ohio athlete Mark Donofrio Jr. and SOOH Vice President of Finance Christine Adolph joined thousands of other cyclists in the the annual Pelotonia cycling event. It took many months of training and fundraising for all participants who made lifelong memories in the 11th annual ride to raise money for cancer research

Mark, 25, has been involved with Special Olympics Ohio for nearly 2 years. He competes in basketball, bowling, cycling, and golf with the Strongsville local organization. Though an accomplished cyclist, Mark says his favorite sport is actually basketball and counts his team’s first winning basketball game among his favorite Special Olympics memories. Mark lives in Broadview Heights and attends Koinonia Workshop where he is currently working toward employment. In his spare time, Mark is extremely interested in trains, specifically steam engines. Not one to back down from a challenge, just one day after riding 25 miles in the Pelotonia event, Mark returned to Strongsville to compete in a Special Olympics golf tournament and earned a silver medal!

Christine Adolph has been the Vice President of Finance for Special Olympics Ohio since September 2018, having served in similar capacities at DSW, Worthington Industries, and Greif, Inc. previously. She has ridden in Pelotonia for four consecutive years, citing family members and friends who have battled cancer as her inspiration. Christine is an avid cyclist, runner, and swimmer who is currently preparing for her second full Ironman triathlon. To date, Christine and Mark’s team has raised more than $8,000 for the Pelotonia organization. Congratulations to all members of the 2019 Greatest Team Ever!