By sharing story, Preston Dwoskin inspires change

Published 10:02 am Friday, April 3, 2026

If you’re attending a sporting event in Snohomish County, there’s a solid chance you’ll run into Preston Dwoskin.

The 34-year-old Marysville native frequents Everett AquaSox games over the summer, and he attends various high school sporting events as both an official and a spectator. He can even be spotted at Washington Wolfpack games in the Arena Football League, shadowing the referee’s signals from the stands.

On March 27, Dwoskin stood inside Snohomish High School next to boys basketball coach Jeff Larson, but not on the hardwood of the school gymnasium. Instead, Dwoskin would be sharing an anti-bullying presentation to Larson’s ninth-grade health class.

Sports play a significant role in Dwoskin’s life, but his biggest purpose is doing whatever he can to prevent the bullying he experienced as a child.

“The purpose of (my campaign) is getting the bullying message out that kids know that bullying is not going to be allowed,” Dwoskin said. “Somebody is there to say, ‘Hey, you’re not alone. If you’re suffering from bullying, there’s places that you can go.’”

Born with significant hearing impairment amid other complications, Dwoskin grew up with disabilities that made him feel “isolated” from his peers. He would sometimes be sent to secondary resource rooms and kept away from his classmates as a form of disciplinary action in the earliest parts of elementary school, but he also experienced it on a social level.

A subject of ridicule and torment from his peers, simply for being different, Dwoskin spent most of his formative years living in fear. While he made it out the other side, the memories still impact him, and it’s exactly why he wants to spread his message to future generations.

“I see kids suffering in their communities,” Dwoskin said. “I’m just someone that can show that I can really overcome, that I can be a productive member of society. A lot of these kids (are told they) can’t do that if they have a disability, or (that) it prevents them (from doing that).

“I’m the guy that says, ‘Hey, it doesn’t matter whether you have a disability or not. You can still do it if you put your mind to whatever you put your mind to in life.’”

The terms “long-shot” and “miracle” are thrown around in sports, but they apply to Dwoskin in real life.

His complications at birth left him extremely ill, to the extent that doctors told his parents, Phoebe and Robert, that he had just a two-percent chance of surviving. Dwoskin spent three months in the ICU and did not leave the hospital until he was six months old.

Even after overcoming those odds, Dwoskin’s life remained an uphill battle. He enrolled at Listen and Talk, a Kirkland-based hearing rehabilitation program, where he spent his early childhood receiving one-on-one cognitive therapy that completely altered the trajectory of his life.

“If I didn’t go there, I would (have) never succeeded in life,” Dwoskin said. “I probably would be completely deaf and have nothing to do with society.”

He is still significantly hearing impaired — even with the assistance of hearing aids, Dwoskin is 95% deaf, compared to 75% at birth — and his hearing will continue declining as he ages. However, his advocacy for special education and the next generation at large only grows by the year.

The Snohomish High School students that Dwoskin spoke to on March 27 heard all about the struggles of his early life, but they also learned of his triumphs.

Arguably his biggest one is starting the annual Buddy Bowl youth football event, which raised over $12,000 during the most recent installment in 2025 for a scholarship fund in Dwoskin’s name that aims to help recipients pay for extracurricular sports and/or mental health services through The BeLegendary Movement.

What started as a single youth football game in 2019, where Dwoskin got to live his dream by serving as the head official, grew into a four-game event involving 20 teams from the North Cascade Youth Football League with 240 players and 137 cheerleaders participating in front of over 3,500 spectators at Sedro-Woolley High School on Nov. 23. There’s even aspirations to expand it to other sports such as basketball, baseball and more.

Dwoskin’s other triumphs include, but are not limited to, lobbying for special education funding in Olympia, competing in the Special Olympics and serving as an official in the WIAA for eight years, with the last four in volleyball. Even getting his driver’s license, something many take for granted, is among Dwoskin’s proudest accomplishments after he was told it would be impossible.

Throughout his life, Dwoskin has attracted supporters simply by being himself. It started as early as third grade at Quil Ceda Elementary, where he met a lifelong friend.

Dane Widness was one of Dwoskin’s first protectors, standing up to kids who made fun of him. The two quickly became “like brothers,” as Widness described it. Dwoskin was a constant presence in Widness’ youth baseball dugouts from the age of 12 until high school, serving as a player-coach under the team’s coach, Widness’ grandfather, Gig Larson.

Even to this day, Widness’ two children, Georgia and Jayce, refer to Dwoskin as their uncle.

“People just needed to give him a chance, instead of just looking at him for having a disability,” Widness said. “It’s easy for kids, I think, for young kids to make fun of people who are different, a little bit. … Everyone deserves to be treated fairly and have friends.”

Elementary school remained a tough time for Dwoskin, but things gradually got better as he made his way to Marysville Pilchuck High School, where he graduated in 2010. Beginning with Widness’ friendship, Dwoskin gained confidence and came into his own. He also found his peers became more accepting as they got older.

Even after leaving high school, Dwoskin still found time to stay involved in the local sports scene. That’s how he caught the eye of Nate DuChesne in 2014.

As the athletic director at Mariner High School at the time, DuChesne ran the district basketball tournament at Everett Community College, where he noticed Dwoskin’s presence. DuChesne could see his passionate support of the athletes and officials, so he enlisted him to help out.

“We put him to work for a couple years, helping out with the tournament,” said DuChense, who is now the principal of Snohomish High School. “He did a great job with that, and we just started the relationship from there.”

As DuChesne got to learn more about Dwoskin’s story over the following years, he realized it needed to be shared with high school students.

Dwoskin had already expressed to Ginger Merkel, the Marysville School District Director of Special Education, that he had a desire to share his story back in 2017. After putting together an initial presentation for the Marysville school board, Dwoskin gained approval to begin speaking at different schools in 2018.

DuChesne helped take things to another level, according to Dwoskin, expanding his reach and making his presentation a staple supplement to Snohomish’s health class curriculum.

“It’s really cool to see somebody his age that has done so much already,” DuChesne said. “He’s overcome disabilities… and I just see this continuing to grow as he gets more experiences and stuff, to have more impact in different areas, but I think he’s always going to have a niche in schools, because that’s really where his experience has started, and all students can relate to that.”

As for making an impact in different areas, Dwoskin already has his next goal: Bringing his story to Washington, D.C. and making change on a national level.

In the meantime, Dwoskin will keep sharing his message in the state of Washington wherever he can. And keep proving people wrong.

“I’m a proud person of who I am. I represent the image of who I am as a person,” Dwoskin said. “I don’t look at myself having a disability. I look at overcoming my disability, and being a proud person of who I am. … I will do whatever I have to do to make sure that I can succeed in life.”