In a blend of hope and sadness, laughter and grief, Angel 34 on Tuesday announced that area student-athletes will spearhead an initiative to raise more than $3 million for the fight against childhood cancer.

Angel 34, a national organization headquartered in Nazareth, was founded by Nicole Sheriff, daughter of Linda and Doug Sheriff, who lost her battle with cancer in 2004 at the age of 15. Since then, Angel 34 has grown and expanded its outreach, and the student-athlete project is the newest.

Doug Sheriff, president of Angel 34, unveiled the initiative at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Muhlenberg, where he introduced the student-athletes who have agreed to serve on the board of directors. They represent more than a dozen high schools across the Valley.

The board, which calls itself Athletes on the Field — Angels in the Community, will meet twice a month and oversee the organization’s fundraiser, which this year has a goal of $3.4 million.

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Sheriff said the students will meet with Lehigh Valley Health Network executives, doctors, nurses and social workers to learn the needs of the hospital, staff, children and their families.

“The board will then use the information to decide how to spend the funds that have been raised,” he said. “The student-athletes will donate their time, skills and passion to help make a difference in the lives of children.”

It was one of Nicole Sheriff’s long-held commitments in her short life. Her father explained that she was diagnosed with cancer when she was 14. Within a year, she lost her battle but had founded Angel 34 and infused it with her spirit of compassion and courage.

“Nicole wanted to do everything she could to help,” said Dr. J. Nathan Hagstrom, LVHN’s chairman of pediatrics. “During her battle with cancer, she displayed such courage and selflessness, she inspired everyone around her. Today, that inspiration will allow Children’s Hospital at Lehigh Valley Hospital to do even more for children with cancer.”

While now the head of Angel 34, Doug Sheriff is still Nicole’s dad, and he remembers the day she talked with her mother about her vision for the foundation. She insisted that all money raised should go toward helping children with cancer and that there should be no paid positions in the organization.

Sheriff said Troy Hein, sports anchor for WFMZ-TV 69 and host of “The Big Ticket,” and Marty Nothstein, cyclist and Olympic gold medalist, will be honorary chairmen for the fundraising initiative.

“There are some people out there you just can’t say no to,” Hein said. “Angel 34, Doug and Linda, and Nicole for me are at the top of that list.”

Nothstein implored the new board of directors to “carry that torch, make us all proud.”

Dr. Philip Monteleone, a pediatric oncologist who treated Nicole’s cancer, lauded Angel 34 and the new fundraising initiative.

“Every child with cancer touches you in different ways,” he said. “For me, Nicole was a kid who never gave up, never quit fighting, but what impressed me the most was her kindness.”

Sheriff showed a video, made this spring by Schaff’s Video, that features staff members of LVH-Muhlenberg’s hematology/oncology department, cancer patients and their families smiling, dancing, clowning around and lip-syncing to the song “Count on Me” by Bruno Mars. The three-minute video, shot in different locations in the Lehigh Valley, can be viewed on YouTube. Search for “Count on Me — Angel 34 Foundation.”

For a finishing touch to the day’s events, Sheriff presented a new coloring book, designed by Shannon Rutan of Nazareth as part of a Girl Scout project. Working with artist Natalie Hartman from ArtsQuest, Rutan created “Teddy’s Tale: A Bear’s-Eye View of Childhood Cancer.”

For more information on Angel 34, go to http://www.angel34.org.

Christy Potter is a freelance writer.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-lvh-angel-34-athletes-20140819,0,1530358.story#ixzz3AwFXx3cs
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ANNVILLE, PA (08/18/2014)(readMedia)– More than 500 Lebanon Valley College students will participate in a two-hour long service project in the auxiliary gymnasium at the Arnold Sports Center on Sunday, Aug. 24 from 2:30-4:30 p.m. The entire incoming Class of 2018 will work with returning student leaders at 15 different stations to make items to be donated to local charities as well as national and international service organizations.

The bulk of the items benefit service organizations in Lebanon County. The Humane Society of Lebanon County will receive 120 fleece blankets made by students during this time for distribution with adopted kittens. Hundreds of “tug toys” will be braided for adopted dogs. Friendship bracelets with rubber athletic charms will be donated for athletes involved in Lebanon County Special Olympics. Four cardboard playhouses will be colored and donated to Habitat for Humanity of Lebanon County. And Lebanon City School District will receive 120 handmade felt puppets.

Several items will be sent to nonprofit organizations outside of the County. Vases filled with cards and brightly colored paper flowers will be delivered to patients of the children’s hospital at the Hershey Medical Center. Holiday cards created during the project will be sent throughout the year to families at Hope Lodge in Hershey.

At the national level, students will write letters of encouragement to current military personnel. Plarn-yarn which the students will make from plastic bags-will be mailed to a group of volunteers in West Virginia to be knit into sleeping mats for the homeless. Friendship bracelets mailed to the Cool Kids Campaign will be distributed to children with cancer.

International concerns have not been forgotten. Representatives from the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) will bring education kits for verification by the students. Hundreds of shoeboxes will be wrapped in Christmas paper in preparation to be filled with toys and sent to children in Africa, Asia and Latin America with Operation Christmas Child.

As they work, the students will enjoy music provided by a live D.J.

The service projects provide a unique opportunity for incoming LVC students to work together as a class toward a common goal. “We’re particularly pleased by the high level of involvement on the part of returning students,” said LVC Chaplain Paul Fullmer. “All of these projects are being coordinated for the incoming students by returning students who are heavily involved in service organizations on campus.”

The Orientation Service Project is the first of a series of programs designed in support of LVC’s goal to prepare students for a life of service to others. Throughout the academic year, students will also engage representatives of local service organizations at a service fair, work monthly with the American Foundation for Children with Aids (AFCA) and Habitat for Humanity of Lebanon County, and participate in national service initiatives such as Make a Difference Day, MLK Day of Service, and Lebanon County Day of Caring, among other projects.

To encourage service to the nation as well as the local community, LVC’s Student Government has designated funds for a service trip to Pittsburg over spring break. International service trips to Honduras and Puerto Rico are also in initial stages of planning.

Several incentive programs seek to reward students for their service. Bronze, Silver or Gold Community Service Awards based upon the number of hours a student serves the local community are posted on LVC’s Job Center Profile for the information of prospective employers. Students who serve the local community are also recognized at an annual banquet and in the commencement program.

Community members who know of active or retired military personnel or residents of local retirement community who might appreciate a note from a college student are welcome to contact Chaplain Fullmer in the Office of Community Service and Volunteerism at 717-867-6135 or fullmer@lvc.edu. The donation of shoeboxes to the Office would also be appreciated.

Source: http://readme.readmedia.com/First-Lesson-for-Incoming-LVC-Students-The-Value-of-Community-Service/9636388

LEBANON, Tenn. – Cumberland’s (Tenn.) fall student-athletes participated in a pair of service projects along with Leadership Training during their first days on campus over the last week.

The volleyball, men’s and women’s cross country and men’s and women’s soccer teams reported to campus on August 7 and took part in three hours of Leadership Training the following day. That afternoon they also visited the Next Step Resource Center in Lebanon, moving furniture and appliances and sorting household items.

Almost 100 returning football players checked in this past Monday and took part in Leadership Training on Tuesday. That afternoon they spent approximately three hours cleaning up and adding new materials to Don Fox Park in Lebanon.

Another 40 or so football players check in Thursday and the first official football practice is scheduled for Friday. The remainder of the Cumberland student-athletes are set to report on August 21, with Leadership Training and a workday at the Wilson County Fair scheduled for August 22.

Source: http://www.mid-southconference.org/article/3415.php

For the third consecutive year, Hope College student-athletes took a break from their summer activities to serve for an afternoon at Special Days Camps in Montague, Michigan.

Special Days Camps provide the traditional camping opportunities for children who have experienced cancer and their siblings for two weeks in the summer.

The first week is dedicated to siblings, while the following week houses children who currently have cancer, or have battled in the past.

Both weeks engage kids with fun activities that allow kids to be “just kids.”

Many of the campers have been attending for years. The community they have established is something Hope athletes were grateful to experience.

“I’ve never witnessed a group of people that cared for each other on such a deep level, so to see that was incredible,” said Ryan VanderPloeg, a senior lacrosse player. “The best part about the community was watching these older kids look out for the younger kids. It wasn’t weird, it wasn’t strange, and it wasn’t like they were trying to be parents.

“They just knew what these kids were going through and what they will go through and that connection was something extremely powerful to experience firsthand.”

While at camp, Hope athletes were placed on teams with campers to participate in a life-size game of the traditional card game, “Spoons.” They also joined the campers for a a swim in the lake, arts and crafts, more camp games, and dinner time.

To cap off a great day, Special Days Campers had the opportunity to give Hope athletes a pie in the face.

Hope athletes enjoyed their time interacting with the kids throughout the day and were greatly impacted by their experiences.

Junior swimmer Jorgie Watson said, “Special Days Camp has awesome campers, staff, and atmosphere. These kids have had a tough life so to see them happy, having fun, and smiling made the experience amazing. It was nice to give back to the community even if it meant getting pied in the face, playing capture the flag, and gaga ball. I can’t wait to go back next year!”

Source: http://athletics.hope.edu/sports/2014-15/SpecialDaysCamp/SpecialDaysCamp#.U_IEi3Cwc4M.twitter

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – Rising sophomore Abigail Bensley (Malvern, Pa.) of the Southern Connecticut State University gymnastics team recently volunteered to participate in a genomics research study for the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

This event is just one example of many community outreach events that SCSU student-athletes will take part in as part of the Tim Greer Insurance Agency Community Service Cup.

Initiated in September, 2008, the ‘Community Service Cup’ program provides a competitive format that allows student-athletes to gain an enriched experience through engagement with the on-campus and local communities by supporting ventures of traditional citizens, campus community members and peer students and student-athletes. SCSU student-athletes volunteered more than 4,000 hours of their time to numerous outreach efforts, both on-campus and in Greater New Haven, during the 2013-14 academic year.

Source: http://www.southernctowls.com/news/2014/8/11/GEN_0811143842.aspx