Most of the time Alyssa Englert spends with Hartford-area children is spent discussing life lessons and basketball skills. Kids being kids, however, there are some more innocent, less specific questions.

“They want to know what college is like,” said Englert, a senior captain on the Hartford women’s basketball team. “They want to know if I’m really allowed to sleep until 10 in the morning.”
It’s safe to say Englert doesn’t spend many mornings sleeping in or much time sitting around.

“I certainly have a full plate, being a Division I student-athlete,” she said. “Basketball is a very important thing and keeping my grades up is right up there with it. But finding time to give back to people who are so supportive of me, our team and Hartford athletics, and being involved with the youth in the Hartford area, is a way to make our program kind of idolized. We want to be a part of the community and show that we care about the youth coming up.”

Englert is one of 84 women’s basketball players — 52 in Division I — nominated for the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Allstate Good Works Team, which honors student-athletes who have “made significant contributions to the greater good of their communities through volunteerism and civic service … in areas of leadership and charitable achievement among their peers.”

WBCA voting will narrow the 84 nominees to one 10-member team (five from Division I), to be announced in February. In April, the 10 winners will be recognized at the women’s Final Four in Nashville, where they will participate in a community project.

“With Alyssa, it was easy for her to understand the opportunity she was getting [as a student-athlete] and she’s just always been a kid who knows it makes sense to give back,” coach Jen Rizzotti said. “She goes out of her way to be a well-rounded student-athlete. We never have enough [community service] opportunities for her. She represents the program so well, because we want all players to have a grander sense of purpose in life.”

Englert carries at 3.7 GPA and will graduate in May with a bachelor’s degree in health sciences. She will remain at UHart three more years, working toward a doctorate in physical therapy. Years down the road, maybe back near her hometown of Dansville, N.Y., or in Greater Hartford, she sees herself opening a clinic and maybe coaching basketball.

Englert, a guard averaging 4.9 points and 2.2 rebounds for the Hawks (3-9, 1-0 America East), spearheads many of the community service efforts for her program. She organizes and leads clinics at schools. She speaks to large groups of students. She even baby sits Rizzotti’s young children – which has nothing to do with her WBCA nomination but speaks to the level of trust and respect the coach has for her.

“Alyssa doesn’t do anything because she has to,” Rizzotti said. “She wants the complete experience and she’s never backed down from taking on a bigger load.”

Englert has volunteered time as part of community cleanup crews and visits local hospitals. Through her involvement with the UHart Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, she has had a “buddy” from the University of Hartford Magnet School on campus and spends maybe two days a week with the sixth-grade girl. She was a key organizer for the 2012 Walk For Weaver at UHart, a fundraiser to assist in former Hawk Amanda Weaver’s recovery from colon cancer. More than $45,000 was raised.

And this year like each of the last three, Englert has helped lead the Hawks’ Adopt A Family holiday initiative in partnership with St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center and the Medical Center Giving Tree program. Each player donates about $30 from her own pocket, money that goes toward buying items on a list of needs provided by the family.

This year’s family included a 19-year-old mother of an infant daughter who is also supporting her ailing father and a sister. The family is originally from a refugee camp in Thailand and has been in the United States for five years. The mother is a student at Capital Community College in Hartford and works two part-time jobs.

Englert has developed a bond with many she’s worked with and says her volunteerism comes naturally.

“Just being from a small town, knowing [so many] people by their first name in the community, and having a lot of young girls who came to see me play, I did a lot in high school, too,” Englert said. “I’m always looking to volunteer. And being a senior captain, I kind of take the initiative.”

The Hawks also participate in the breast cancer walk at Bushnell Park every year and hold a women in sports day on campus.

“We got really formal probably four to five years ago, and it’s just become a part of who we decided we wanted to be,” said athletic director Pat Meiser, in her 21st year at Hartford. “The kids we bring here are serious about life. Kids really attack their college experience. If you’re not interested, if you just want to be a great basketball player, you’re coming to the wrong school. We expect student-athletes to give back.”

For a video clip of Englert talking about her endeavors, go to http://www.courant.com/alyssavideo

Source: December 26, 2013|By MIKE ANTHONY, manthony@courant.com, The Hartford Courant

QUEENS, N.Y. – While the holiday break is an opportunity for many of America’s student-athletes to rest up and prepare for seasons ahead, eight Red Storm student-athletes will soon be packing their bags and traveling to the Dominican Republic during their time off to spread St. John’s University’s Vincentian mission and share this special time of year with children in need.

Red Storm women’s soccer student-athletes Kelly Crevani, Casey Marks, Amy Marron and Shelby Halasz, and Red Storm baseball student-athletes Dan Roland, James Lomangino, Bret Dennis and Matt Clancy will be traveling to La Romana, D.R., to volunteer at Orfanato Niños de Cristo, an orphanage that houses more than 165 children from the Dominican Republic and Haiti who have been abandoned or subject to abuse of many forms.

The St. John’s student-athletes will be leaving for La Romana on Jan. 5, and will spend Jan. 7-9 at the orphanage. In a joint effort between the women’s soccer and baseball programs, the Red Storm student-athletes will be leading a soccer clinic on the first day and a baseball clinic on the second day. On Jan. 9, the student-athletes will be cooking meals with the children.

“I am very excited to spend some of the winter break working at the orphanage,” said Roland, a redshirt junior for the Red Storm. “We are all so fortunate to have the opportunity to be St. John’s student-athletes and it is going to be a rewarding experience to give back to those that are less fortunate.”

Serving as guide to the contingent from Queens, N.Y., while in the Dominican Republic will be Crevani, a Rockleigh, N.J., native and freshman goalkeeper for the Red Storm whose family has been involved with the orphanage since 2007. The Crevanis, who sponsor two children from Orfanato Niños de Cristo named Taylor and Yakhira, work with the orphanage several times a year, spending a few days with the children as well as bringing clothes, shoes and toiletries down to the Dominican Republic.

A registered 501(c)(3) organization in the United States, Orfanato Niños de Cristo does not allow children from the orphanage to be adopted, but donors can sponsor children and keep in regular contact with them as well as send them additional items depending on their needs. Together with its donors, Orfanato Niños de Cristo works daily to transform the lives of children by providing a safe and loving environment which will enable them to grow into caring and productive members of the community.

Crevani says her past experiences at Orfanato Niños de Cristo have been some of the most rewarding in her life.

“Working with the orphanage for the past seven years has been contagious,” said Crevani. “The children of the orphanage have become extended family, which we look forward to visiting for special occasions. We receive more from these children than we give. These children teach us far more about life than any experience comparable. We are always greeted with smiles and hugs from their familiar faces, reminding us how happy they are with so little.”

Crevani adds that involving her fellow Red Storm student-athletes in her family’s service in the Dominican Republic was a simple and logical decision.

“Every year, we invite family and friends to join us on our trip to the orphanage,” said Crevani. “St. John’s athletes have become my extended family with whom I want to share this experience.”

Check back on www.RedStormSports.com on Jan. 8-10 to read first-hand accounts from the Red Storm student-athletes as they volunteer at Orfanato Niños de Cristo.

About Orfanato Niños de Cristo
Together with its donors, Orfanato Niños de Cristo is working daily to transform the lives of children by providing a safe and loving environment which will enable them to grow into caring and productive members of the community. Orfanato Niños de Cristo provides the support the children need as part of a responsible family: love, physical, emotional and spiritual support, the nutrition and health care that every child deserves, and a quality education from a school that will provide them the opportunity to optimize their potential. For more information or to become a donor, please visit www.ninosdecristo.org.

Source: http://www.redstormsports.com/genrel/010314aaa.html

The Brentwood Athletic Booster Club will be presented with a $3,000 check today from Team Up 4 Community, a nonprofit that is rewarding student-athletes for completing nearly 8,500 community service hours during the holiday season.

About 800 children in the Brentwood Union Free School District — from the fencing, baseball, basketball, lacrosse, track, football swimming and soccer teams — completed the service hours in a 30-day period between November and December, according to John Rueb, president of the booster club.

The effort was part of the nonprofit’s Long Island Holiday Sports Challenge, where schools in Nassau and Suffolk counties signed up to collectively fulfill 10,000 community service hours.

“There’s a big need in the Brentwood area for help from others from the outside, there’s a lot that are going without,” Rueb said. “It’s nice to see these kids step up for their neighbors and their classmates.”

The volunteers in grades 3 through 12 helped in food, toy, clothing and coat drives, as well as feeding the homeless, coaching younger children and cleaning up courtyards around the neighborhood.

Team Up 4 Community — an international community giveback project with the W20 Foundation, which was started by former New York Islanders’ player Steve Webb — will present the check during halftime at the boys varsity basketball game at the Brentwood High School Sonderling Gymnasium. The game starts at 4 p.m.

The Moriches Youth Lacrosse-Blue Devils also received a grant of $1,500 and Alexis Gonzalez, a Long Island University softball player, received $500.

Source: Newsday: http://www.newsday.com/long-island/towns/long-island-now-1.1732330/community-events-today-and-ongoing-1.6751579

Dec. 30, 2013

CHICAGO – The UIC women’s basketball team recently participated in The Salvation Army’s “Adopt-A-Family” program. The Flames collected toys, non-perishable food and other essentials for a local family in need.

Redshirt senior center Katie Hannemann participated in the program with UIC’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) the past two years. Hannemann asked the players and coaches if they would be interested in participating this year.

The Flames decided as a group to participate in the “Adopt-A-Family” program instead of exchanging gifts amongst the squad. A Salvation Army representative selected a family that consists of a single mother who has four young children and is pregnant with her fifth child.

The coaches purchased educational toys for the children and collected non-perishable foods to donate. The players bought the essentials for the family, which included coats, boots, hats, gloves, clothes, pillows and blankets.

The players and coaches wrapped the gifts and Hannemann delivered all the presents to The Salvation Army station on Dec. 23. Hannemann met the mother on her trip to the station and said “she was extremely appreciative.”

According to Hannemann, the mother is planning on attending a future game at the UIC Pavilion. The players and coaches are excited to meet the entire family.

Source: http://www.uicflames.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/123013aaa.html

No matter what month it shows on the calendar, people involved in the Wiley College athletic programs always find ways to give back to their community. As Christmastime approaches, Wiley athletes and coaches take their community service to the proverbial “next level” the same way they do competing.

The Wildcat and Lady Wildcat athletes are in the midst of what could be one of their most successful sports campaigns in recent memory collectively across all sports, but even though the Wildcats are giving the college and Marshall community something to cheer about on the court, it is their work away from the arena which is making Wiley College players the big men and women on campus and in town.

“Giving back to the community is what Wiley is all about, as for us, it is both a personal and professional commitment,” Wiley College Director of Athletics Janet Eaton said. “Wiley is a place where everyone can succeed. We want to share our blessings with others in our community and allow them to prosper.”

Christmastime is a time for giving, and this spirit was not lost on the Wiley College Department of Athletics. With student-athletes and their teams leading the way, athletes collected approximately 50 toys to distribute to children in the Marshall area in a Toy Drive for the Boys and Girls Club of Marshall.

Wiley College’s Toy Drive is now in its sixth year of existence, and as the Wildcat basketball teams have combined for a 20-2 record prior to the Christmas break, their on-court power is matched only by their off-the-court generosity. For the second year in a row, Wiley College hoopsters and coaching staff spent Thanksgiving Day at Trinity Episcopal Church in Marshall, feeding and serving meals to needy families.

“This event was something which was orchestrated by Coach Eaton in which our teams have embraced,” men’s basketball coach Andre Payne said. “We try to teach our guys how there is more to being a Wiley student-athlete than being able to dribble a basketball. It’s also about giving back and lending a hand.”

Serving meals for large groups of people is nothing new to Payne, as on game days throughout the basketball season, one can smell the barbecue chicken he cooks for the concession stand several hours prior to tipoff. It’s hardly been a diversion, as the men are 9-1 and ranked for the first time since 2008.

Payne’s tenacity for cooking for a large number of people has been put to greater use on Thanksgiving.

Since his arrival in Marshall in 2006, Payne and his wife Nikki have opened their home and brought Thanksgiving to dozens of students at Wiley College who did not leave campus for the holiday season.

The Paynes, with help from Wiley’s ABL food service, served a Thanksgiving dinner at the Ingram Hall dormitory the day before Thanksgiving. On the day of, they opened their home for the community.

“We have a lot of students who are not able to get home for Thanksgiving, whether it’s because of sports, or they are simply too far away from home,” Payne said. “We want to do whatever we can to give our students a Thanksgiving meal and show them there are people who care about them.”

Wiley College athletics is always looking for opportunities to serve, but they’re sometimes found first.

While the basketball teams and coaching staff were serving Thanksgiving meals at Trinity, Eaton met with Karen Abney Neal-Hill, who had business contacts with the Salvation Army. The meeting presented Wiley with the chance to ring the famous Salvation Army Bell, and ring the bell they did en masse.

“We were very excited to have Wiley student-athletes participate,” said Marshall Salvation Army office manager Tammy Whitaker. “Our board members were amazed and proud of them for doing this.”

Several dozen Wiley athletes from every Wildcat team took their turns ringing the bell at locations throughout the city, including Wal-Mart, Brookshire Brothers, Walgreen’s, Kroger’s and Super 1 Foods.

“It is a priceless feeling as the AD at this campus to see our athletes giving up their time to help in the community,” Eaton said. “There aren’t enough words to express the joy of seeing them give back.”