A Whole New World for Unified Bocce Players
Sullivan County Team Rides High into USA Games with Gorgeous Green Carpet
By Randy Robertson, NYC & Hudson Valley Regional Storyteller
In the classic Disney film “Aladdin” a magical flying carpet leads to life-changing opportunities for the cast of characters. In Sullivan County, a beautiful new green carpet is having a similar impact.
The Unified athletes Robert Goss and Noah Ingber, along with partners Syliva Meacham and Victor Vargas, have been fine-tuning their bocce skills all year using a brand-new indoor bocce court. After years of rolling bocce balls in a horse barn, a city park and even a local pub, having a first-class bocce court with artificial green grass to practice on is like a dream come true for this team.
“We’re really excited to have this new bocce court,” said Braydon Huebsch, the bocce team coach. “It’s the same court used in the major competitions like the USA Games. Getting to practice every week on this court is helpful, and now other people see us using this court and they want to get involved too.”
This fairy tale collaboration of athletes, partners and coaches somehow came together and clicked in the past two years, leading to the state championship in Glen Falls, NY in October 2024 and a berth in the USA Games being played in Minnesota this week.
“Their attention and focus, I love seeing it,” Meacham said. “Rob has stepped up his game astronomically and their camaraderie is great.”
Rob and Noah both live in the New Hope Community in Loch Sheldrake, about 9 miles east of Monticello in the Hudson Valley region. New Hope was founded in 1975 to provide opportunities and services for individuals with intellectual disabilities. Rob and Noah are housemates who not only live together but are now competing together on a national stage with the Special Olympics.
“We’re like brothers,” Noah said. “He looks out for me, and I look out for him.”
Rob agreed, noting that he and Noah especially like the opportunities to play sports through the New Hope Community’s association with the Special Olympics.
“I’ve been playing with Special Olympics since high school,” Rob said. “I was always happy to compete against people, be involved and it gave me something to do. It’s an honor to be part of Special Olympics.”
The journey to the USA Games in Minnesota this week started in a horse barn on the New Hope property. Barn Manager Paige Peloso, who is also in Minnesota this week to coach several athletes, worked with Huebsch to dedicate some barn space for the community members to learn bocce. Rob and Noah were early and eager participants, but they were trying to throw balls on a bed of recycled rubber tires. Though this was a start, they sought other options including a small indoor bocce court at a neighborhood pub and an outdoor court at community park. However, the pub court wasn’t always available and the drive to the park was time-consuming and inconvenient.
Despite these long odds, Rob and Noah’s bond and determination helped them prevail. They somehow won the gold medal in Glens Falls despite never really having an appropriate practice court.
“Getting the call from USA Games I was so proud of them,” Peloso recalled. “Playing on these other surfaces ended up being a cool advantage for them because they learned to play on any surface and now they can figure out how to slow a ball down. It made them better players.”
Victor and Sylvia are long-time employees and volunteers at New Hope Community, as are Braydon and Paige. While Rob and Noah live in Loch Sheldrake, Victor hails from Monticello and Sylvia from nearby Kauneonga Lake. When the Unified team won the bocce gold, it presented an opportunity to petition the New Hope board to purchase an indoor bocce court. Early in 2026 that dream became reality and now Rob, Noah, Victor, Sylvia and a growing number of New Hope Community members are playing and practicing bocce year-round inside the gym on an official bocce court made of green artificial turf and white inflatable borders.
According to Coach Braydon, everyone is super motivated to practice now that they have a reliable court and time to work on improvements. It takes a good 20 minutes to unroll the green carpet and inflate the walls, but nobody minds and everyone pitches in to help set up the court for practice. For Rob and Noah, both left-handers, the chance to play the sport together is really motivating.
“Rob never misses a practice,” Braydon said. “He’s working on skills drills and strategy. He is motivated to be an anchor for the team. What makes Noah good at bocce is he refuses to be bad at bocce! He really focuses on what is being taught. These guys are best friends and do everything together, they’re always building each other up.”
In a short amount of time, they all rose together from the horse barn to the USA Games. And if this dream come true includes shining, shimmering, splendid medals in Minnesota, nobody will be surprised.
“We have a great team and a great plan,” Noah said. “I feel positive we’re going to win a medal.”
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