Meet Carl Williams, Special Olympics USA athlete and Bank of America employee

Carl Williams Playing Tennis

Bank of America is a long-standing partner of Special Olympics. For nearly 40 years, the organizations have collaborated to support athlete leadership and empowerment on the field, while providing opportunities for economic advancement off the field.

As part of this ongoing commitment, Bank of America is serving as the official Bank of the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games, which will be held from June 5-12 in Orlando, Florida. Bank of America employee, Carl Williams, will compete in tennis during the Games and will be one of more than 5,500 athletes participating.

Getting to know Carl

Carl Williams has been with Bank of America for 30 years, holding several different roles throughout his tenure. He’s worked within the Research Department, Billing Department, on the Support Services team, and most recently, works on the Warehouse Fulfillment team.

Carl Williams prepping for the Special Olympics

Carl is also a passionate athlete. He first became involved with Special Olympics through the Benedictine School in Ridgely, Maryland, which offers education programs and services for individuals with disabilities. He has participated in Special Olympics for 15 years, with basketball and tennis being his favorite sports of the Games. In fact, one of his favorite memories is winning the 1993 Special Olympics basketball championship at Glasgow High School in Newark, Delaware.

Carl is also incredibly involved off the field. In 2015, he served as a Bank of America employee reporter covering the Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles, allowing him to learn more about how other athletes train for their sports. He also served on the leadership board for Special Olympics Delaware, meeting with other members monthly.

Carl’s advice to other Special Olympics athletes? “Enjoy yourself during this exciting experience.”

Bank of America’s partnership with Special Olympics

Through the partnership with Special Olympics, Bank of America seeks to not only support athletic excellence, but to also address barriers to acceptance, inclusion, and respect for the disability community.

In early 2022, Bank of America announced a three-year, $5 million grant to Special Olympics to expand leadership programs into urban school districts – with a focus on reaching underserved communities and communities of color – to address ongoing, compounded disparities faced by individuals with intellectual disabilities. The funding will help Special Olympics remove barriers to inclusion while supporting athletes and their families in accessing economic opportunity and quality education.

Learn more about Bank of America’s commitment to advancing a more inclusive world for all.

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