Katie Spencer, Special Olympics Pennsylvania Hall of Famer, prolific fundraiser, and tireless volunteer, has died at 35
She earned 132 medals over more than two decades of competition and received a 2021 Sheetz Family Award of Excellence for her contributions to Special Olympics. “She lit up the room,” her mother said.
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Katie Spencer, 35, of Worcester, Montgomery County, a celebrated multisport athlete, 2024 inductee into the Special Olympics Pennsylvania Hall of Fame, advocate for people with special needs, prolific fundraiser, mentor, and volunteer, died Friday, June 28, of cancer at Pennsylvania Hospital.
Gregarious and athletic, Ms. Spencer used her vivacious personality and many talents, for more than 25 years, to benefit and inspire her family and friends, and the organizations with which she engaged. Born with Down syndrome, she became a global messenger and mentor for Special Olympics, local ambassador for the Best Buddies Pennsylvania nonprofit, and award-winning ambassador and volunteer for the Variety children’s charity.
She was captain of basketball and soccer teams for Special Olympics Pennsylvania, and also played bocce, floor hockey, bowling, unified softball, and other sports. She earned 132 medals over more than two decades of competition and received a 2021 Sheetz Family Award of Excellence for her contributions to Special Olympics.
“We’ve continued to be amazed by her ability to lead and inspire her fellow athletes to succeed,” Sheetz spokesman Nick Ruffner said in 2021.
Off the courts and fields, Ms. Spencer was a mentor to other athletes, spokesperson at Special Olympics events, and member of the Montgomery County athlete leadership team. In June, she was inducted into the Special Olympics Pennsylvania Hall of Fame.
In a Facebook tribute, officials for Special Olympics Pennsylvania in Bethlehem said: “Our athletes and coaches … have had the long-standing privilege of calling Katie their friend. She will be missed greatly by all who knew her.”
At Best Buddies, she graduated from its leadership and friendship development programs, and represented the organization and its many partners at community events. She served as an ambassador and mentor at Variety, earned a U.S. Presidential Volunteer Service Award in 2004, and was named an Ace of Variety in 2018 for her outreach efforts.
As a fundraiser, she collected nearly $100,000 for Special Olympics Pennsylvania, Best Buddies, and Variety.
Ms. Spencer also cooked and delivered meals to homebound seniors, and volunteered at a senior care center and no-kill cat shelter. She earned a Jimmy Medal from the Philadelphia Charity Ball in 2019 for “making a positive difference in the lives of others” and was recognized by the Flyers, Carson Wentz’s AO1 Foundation, Walmart, Peco, the City of Philadelphia, and others.
She threw out the first pitch at a Phillies game, met soccer star Megan Rapinoe, and mingled with the Flyers, Eagles, and other athletes at games and events. “Her strength and her genuine caring for others inspired all,” her family said in a tribute. “She made this world a better place every day.”
A friend said in an online tribute: “Our world is diminished without her.”
Katherine Mary Spencer was born March 12, 1989. She lived in Wyndmoor, Horsham, and Worcester with her parents and younger sister, Barbara, and graduated from Methacton High School in 2010.
She was active and a good student, and earned a Science Fair award at Arcola Intermediate School in 2003. She was a summer camp counselor and after-school mentor for Variety, and she served as a sous chef at a Best Buddies Pennsylvania awards dinner a few years ago.
She was funny, played jokes on folks, and laughed easily. She followed the Villanova University women’s basketball team, liked to wear a distinctive white wig at Flyers games, and her own teammates nicknamed her Starbucks because she loved coffee so much.
She went paragliding in California and made custom bracelets for friends and birthday cards for her family. She was empathetic and thoughtful, especially with children and seniors, and her family and friends called her the baby whisperer.
“She truly is the single most impressive person I have ever known,” her sister said. Her father said: “She was a ray of light in any room she was in.”
Her mother said: “She was full of life and the kindest person I’ve ever met.”
In addition to her parents and sister, Ms. Spencer is survived by other relatives.
Celebrations of her life were held on July 1 and 2.
Donations in her name may be made to Special Olympics Pennsylvania, 2570 Boulevard of the Generals, Suite 124, Norristown, Pa. 19403; Best Buddies Pennsylvania, 640 Freedom Business Center Dr., Suite 115, King of Prussia, Pa. 19406; and Variety, the Children’s Charity, Box 609, Worcester, Pa. 19490.