The UNCW men’s and women’s basketball teams capped a busy offseason recently by volunteering at Wilmington’s Brigade Boys and Girls Club on its annual field day.
The event is held each year late in the summer and brings the community’s youth together for a fun-filled day of outside activities.
The Seahawk student-athletes worked at different activity stations, helping and interacting with the children. The kids played traditional games like sack races, balloon toss and dizzy bat races.
Angie Hill, director of marketing and development at the club, said 250 boys and girls attended the field day this year
“We appreciate the student-athletes spending their time to help out,” Hill said. “It’s good for the kids to see the student-athletes giving back to the community and being role models. It starts their thought processes about higher education.”
During the 2013-14 school year, UNCW student-athletes completed more than 8,000 community service hours. Head women’s basketball coach Adell Harris said giving back to the community is an integral part of the athletic program.
“It’s vital for us to contribute back to this community in some way,” Harris said. “It really is the most important thing we do as a program.”
The women’s basketball team volunteers in some capacity at least once a month.
“This is part of our culture,” Harris continued. “We are a service program and I’m a service coach. I serve the students, and at the same time, they have a service responsibility as well. It’s ingrained in who we are.”
The women’s basketball team is involved with several different local organizations in Wilmington and also hopes to start a reading program in the near future.
Source: http://portcitydaily.com/2014/08/31/sports-seahawk-student-athletes-give-back-to-brigade-boys-and-girls-club/
