“Tough times never last, but tough people do!” and “Fear only limits your dreams #dontgiveup” were two of the motivational phrases handwritten on notes from Chicago-area female student athletes to inspire women facing difficult circumstances.

On Wednesday, about 16 students representing Whitney Young Magnet High School, Lane Tech College Prep High School, Fenwick High School, Back of the Yards College Preparatory High School and Solorio Academy High School dropped off dozens of notes to women who are homeless at Deborah’s Place, a social service agency in East Garfield Park that provides permanent housing and support services.

The messages were part of a donation that included 1,000 pairs of socks and a $1,000 check collected by hundreds of athletes from 80 public and private city and suburban high schools as part of the “Making a Difference On AND Off the Field” community service campaign. The campaign is presented by Buddy’s Helpers, the charitable arm of the PepsiCo Showdown, an annual high school soccer tournament in which more than 200 schools participate.

“It’s a great opportunity: women helping women, female student athletes helping women in need,” said Joe Trost, who founded the PepsiCo Showdown and launched Buddy’s Helpers in December 2015. “Everybody gave a little to make a big impact.”

To learn more please visit: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-chicago-student-athletes-shelter-donation-met-20170201-story.html

The National Association of Division III Athletic Administrators (NADIIIAA) presented the Albion College athletic department with an honorable mention award in the array of projects category for the third consecutive year as the organization presented JOSTENS Community Service Awards at the NCAA Convention in Nashville, Tenn., last weekend.

With leadership from the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), Albion student-athletes accumulated 3,600 hours of community service during the 2015-16 academic year. All of the Briton squads worked a two-hour camp, aimed at teaching kids the fundamentals of various sports, and the Winter Carnival.

Each team was also required to complete two community service events approved by the SAAC executive board.

“The community service events have been a success internally and externally,” Senior Associate Athletic Director and SAAC Adviser Melissa Walton said. “Athletes became closer as a team while helping others. The Albion community benefits most from the work of the teams, whether the parks are cleaner or the children mentored.

“The ultimate goal of this work is to get Albion College to be more of a part of the Albion and greater Michigan community, and for athletes to take more interest in community service,” she added. “Most importantly, the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee has provided many children throughout the community with beneficial activities that brought about memories and experiences that will last a lifetime.”

General athletics news can be found on @gobrits on Twitter and Albion College Athletics on Facebook

Source: http://www.gobrits.com/general/2016-17/releases/20170123ftyq3x

Photo Caption: Miller Avenue and Wading River schools in the Shoreham-Wading River School District celebrated the Super Bowl by holding “Souper” Bowl food drives. As part of the community service activity, students competed to collect the most food for their grade level. All items will be donated to local food pantries.

Photo courtesy of the Shoreham-Wading River School District

On Monday, January 16, 2017, the Villanova community celebrated the legacy Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This year marked the 10th year of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service. While the day was an institutional holiday for the University, student-athletes packed their day `off’ hosting students from various schools in Philadelphia as a part of the “Let’s Read. Let’s Move. Philadelphia” campaign. The campaign is sponsored by the Corporation for National and Community Service and First Lady Michelle Obama.

It is a great tradition for Villanova student-athletes to participate in. Student-athletes from the women’s swimming, women’s basketball, football, and cheerleading teams worked with the Philadelphia youth, showing them drills and games pertaining to each respective sport.

Sophomore football student-athlete, Louis Csaszar explained that “It was an awesome opportunity to give back with my teammates on MLK Day and provide a chance for kids from inner-city Philadelphia to be active and learn basic football skills through the Let’s Move Camps on their day off from school.” Director of Student-Athlete Development Allison Venella worked very hard to put together a day for one hundred children from underrepresented backgrounds and schools to play and learn.

As a whole, the event took teamwork from a variety of departments on campus focused on giving the Philadelphia children an experience they could enjoy.

The feedback from the children participating in the MLK Day of Service was overwhelmingly positive. Nicole Davis, Assistant Director for the Villanova Center for Multicultural Affairs, shared “The opportunity to have youth from the inner city engage with students on a college campus is more than rewarding. It gives students “hope” for their future! One student said to me “I love Villanova”. That is why we continually provide this program every year.”

The Day of Service concluded with a healthy lunch for all of the children who participated in the day’s events. The lunch served as a teaching point, focusing on fun ways to maintain a healthy diet. Student-athletes also talked about positive decision making and the importance of leadership.

Additionally, members of the women’s rowing team volunteered off campus, at Interim House West, a non-profit organization in Philadelphia which works with women and children, as a part of Villanova’s annual MLK Day of Service.

Source: http://www.villanova.com/sports/student-services/spec-rel/012317aaa.html

Strong performances on the field, on the court, on the mat and in the classroom and community headlined a banner fall for the varsity programs within the Virginia Tech Athletics Department.

In the community, Virginia Tech’s student-athletes completed 2,092 hours worth of community service in a five-month span starting at the beginning of August. Tech’s football program led the way by participating in four projects this fall, including two at the Belk Bowl.

Community-service projects throughout the fall ranged from reading to children at local elementary schools to working fall festivals at local schools to working at the Montgomery Country Christmas Store to volunteering as a marshal at the Color Me Rad run that raises money for Special Olympics. The Tech women’s soccer team helped with the flood relief efforts in West Virginia, the softball and men’s basketball teams made visits to Carilion Children’s, a pediatric care services unit of Carilion Clinic, and numerous student-athletes worked at United Way events throughout the community and with Micah’s Backpacks.

To learn more please visit: http://www.hokiesports.com/pr/recaps/20170125aaa.html