Gerry Raphielli
Gerry “G-Money” Raphielli was presented at Monday’s Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table press luncheon as the Special Olympics’ Athlete of the Month.
Award sponsor Aaron Brown, of Edward Jones Financial, remembered fondly the first time he met Gerry, who was wearing a jersey that had the name “G-Money” on it.
“I go over to Gerry and say, ‘Hey Gerry, what’s G-Money all about?’,” Brown recalled. “And he goes, ‘well, G is the initial of my first name and money is who I am, so G-Money.’ I figured this was going to be a good little season. It’s been seven years since then.”
Raphielli, at 56 years old, has been competing for Special Oympics since he was 18 and is now a player-coach for the basketball team. Raphielli stands 6’8″ tall and is known for his shot-blocking ability.
