[May 16, 2005] Western Illinois Athletics Raise $16,000 Through 1,700 Hours of Community Service | Members of the men's basketball team took time out of their busy schedules last fall to participate in an Up 'til Dawn letterwriting campaign. In all, WIU student-athletes raised $7,450 for Up 'til Dawn. |
MACOMB, Ill. - Western Illinois University student-athletes tallied more than 1,700 hours of community service and raised more than $16,000 to benefit local and national organizations during the 2004-05 academic year. Student-athletes representing all 20 Western Illinois athletic teams participated in Relay for Life, Bowl for Kids Sake, and Red Ribbon Week. In addition, the Student-Athlete Advisory Council was recognized as the top fundraising student organization for Up ‘til Dawn, an all-campus philanthropy that raised over $20,000 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
In all, $16,157 and 1,714 hours of community service were tallied from August 2004 to May 2005 by Western Illinois student-athletes. “Our student-athletes recognize the value of community service and they accept the fact they are in a leadership role,” said Western Illinois Director of Athletics Dr. Tim Van Alstine. “The number of hours they have volunteered is indicative of their desire to give something back to the community.”
SAAC raised more than $6,000 for a variety of organizations throughout the past year, including $4,775 for Up ‘til Dawn. The council totalled 188 hours of community service throughout the year and raised $1,350 for Relay for Life and $330 for the WIU Tsunami Relief Fund.
The Westerwinds volleyball team initiated this year’s fundraising efforts by implementing the Blocks for Breast Cancer program, where participants made monetary pledges for each block recorded by the team throughout the 2004 campaign. To date, the program has raised $876.
In addition to Blocks for Breast Cancer, the volleyball and softball squads sold ‘For the Fight’ bracelets, and donated more than $1,000 to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. The women’s golf squad held its initial Rally for a Cure fundraiser to benefit the Komen Foundation, and accumulated an additional $1,900.
The men’s and women’s tennis teams recorded 149 community service hours by corresponding with their respective pen pals, and the men’s soccer team tabulated 134 hours while refereeing YMCA soccer matches. The Leatherneck football team took some time off from spring drills and volunteered 8 hours to the community health fair and 15 hours for the Character Counts program.
The Western Illinois baseball squad held two skills clinics in January where the Leathernecks tabulated a team-high 480 hours of community service. In addition to the clinics, the baseball team raised $1,300 in October for the families of 9/11 victims.
The men’s basketball team and women’s soccer team also participated in Up ‘til Dawn letterwriting campaigns and raised $995 and $1,745, respectively.
All 20 Western Illinois athletic teams were also represented at the Macomb Big Brothers/Big Sisters Bowl for Kids Sake and Red Ribbon Week. The student-athletes raised $1,800 during the Bowl for Kids Sake event through pledges by friends and families.
“Lisa Melz has done a wonderful job in organizing and motivating our student-athletes,” added Van Alstine. “She has been the catalyst for this endeavor.”
“It is inspiring for me to work with such a fantastic group of young adults. In addition to full academic loads, practices, and competitions, our student-athletes find the time to support the communities that support them so much,” said athletic academic advisor Lisa Melz. “Our Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, in particular, has been the pride of our department in terms of community service and charitable fundraising.”
Western Illinois’ student-athletes surpassed their 2003-04 community service efforts by 300 hours and $4,150. Copy By: Ashley Bishop |
