ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – Special Olympics Florida and Publix stores are teaming up for an annual campaign to raise money for nearly 75,000 athletes.
J.R. Lobinsky has been a Special Olympics Athlete for more than 20 years. He just added powerlifting to his resume, but he’s also competed in track and field and basketball, which he said is his favorite.
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“It’s basketball because I’ve always liked to shoot the basketball and put it in the hoop and stuff like that,” Lobinsky said.
Lobinsky is also a longtime Publix employee in St. Johns County.
Shoppers can visit any Publix store to donate to the campaign. Until Jan. 19, the grocery chain is running its “Torch Icon Campaign” to serve almost 75,000 Special Olympics athletes in Florida.
Zoe Losasso is the community engagement manager with Special Olympics in Northeast Florida. Losasso said the money goes towards funding sports programs, health screenings, and athlete leadership programs.
“This helps with uniforms, it helps for the cost of going to competitions, it helps with the screening, glasses, hearing aids that we offer to athletes,” Losasso said.
Lobinsky went to Orlando in 2022 for the USA Games and finished with a gold medal in the pentathlon, which is comprised of five different events.
He said he’ll carry that experience with him for the rest of his life.
“It is just amazing, especially after competing in the USA games where I competed against athletes from all across the country, plus we have athletes from the Caribbean Islands,” Lobinsky said.
In 2024, the campaign raked in more than $3.4 million. Losasso said having that kind of support touches their hearts.
“It is incredibly impactful,” Losasso said. “It lets us keep offering the programs that we do. These can be life-saving services that we offer.”
Lobinsky said it’s great that he’s being supported by Publix.
“The one thing I love most about Publix is the support system that I get from not only as an associate but the fact that I have told them about how I also do Special Olympics,” Lobinsky said.
The Special Olympics Florida “Area” games will be in either Jacksonville or St. Johns County in March. The regional games will be held at Mainland High School in Daytona Beach in April. The competition wraps up the state games in Orlando in May.