Athletes in the Community Archives - Page 4 of 16

AFH Staff Piece

Posted: December 15, 2023 Updated: December 15, 2023 by Hannah Bronkema

Getting Into the Holiday Spirit by Giving Back to Others

By Mattis Koch, Mental Health Research & Digital Media Intern

As the Giving Season approaches, athletes from various sports are coming together to make a difference in their communities through volunteering and giving back.

“It’s all about bringing holiday cheer and bringing resources and support for people that need it,” said NBA star and 2021 AFH Community Hero Award recipient Stephen Curry.

Athletes for Hope is dedicated to encouraging and aiding athletes across all levels to use their platform to create lasting change in their communities through the holiday season and beyond.

Volunteering During the Holiday Season

In addressing the pressing issue of food insecurity, the significant surge in volunteerism during the holiday season, both nationally and within the athletic community, reflects a shared commitment to making a positive impact. According to HandsOn Connect (2021), non-profit organizations experience a remarkable 50% increase in volunteers during the holiday season compared to the yearly average. This spirit of giving extends to the world of athletics, where professional and collegiate athletes actively engage in philanthropic opportunities. Sports teams often participate in initiatives addressing food insecurity, including our AFH University student-athletes at Georgetown University, where soccer, rowing, and softball teams packed over 1,000 sandwiches that were donated in the local D.C. area.

A Georgetown student-athlete prepares a sandwich.

Sandwhiches packed for Martha's Table, a nonprofit in Washington D.C.

However, despite these commendable efforts, the challenges of food insecurity persist, demanding continued attention and action. More than 44 million people in the US face hunger, including 1 in 5 children (Feeding America). Hunger occurs for people from all walks of life but doesn’t affect everyone equally. Groups like children, seniors, Black, Indigenous, and other people of color face hunger at higher rates. With regards to athletics, up to 60% of Division I collegiate athletes are food insecure (Department of Nutrition and Dietetics).

As Minnesota Vikings player and AFH Community Hero of the Week Dalton Risner mentioned in our athlete spotlight ,“We may not be stopping world hunger but we are making a positive impact one day at a time without turning down opportunities to do more.”

Dalton Risner smiles between two other volunteers.

How can you help? Consider volunteering at your local food pantry and participating in charitable opportunities in your community. Educating and advocating also play a crucial role in addressing food security. Donating to organizations such as Stephen Curry’s Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation or local nonprofits that focus on tackling the disparities of food insecurity in their communities. By coming together and taking action, we can work towards a more equitable and hunger-free future for all.

Get Involved with Athletes for Hope

Often, athletes want to make a positive difference in the world, but they don’t always know how to begin or how to turn their charitable passions into action. If you are a current or former athlete whose 2024 resolution is to give back to your community, Athletes for Hope is here to help.

Our Causeway takes the form of a road map to illustrate an athlete’s journey through the world of philanthropy. Contrary to an athlete’s competitive spirit, their philanthropic journey along the Causeway is not a race. Each athlete proceeds at their own pace as Athletes for Hope guides them every step of the way.

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Athletes In Action

Posted: December 12, 2023 Updated: December 12, 2023 by Hannah Bronkema

Student-Athletes Serve Up Joy In Baton Rouge

Written by: Kenya Warren-Hollins, MPA, Program Manager, AFH University

For our AFH University student-athletes, the weeks before Thanksgiving are often met with studying for finals, trips back home, and winter workouts. Amidst all of the hustle and bustle, something our Baton Rouge campuses look forward to each year is their week-long service project Baton Rouge Serves With Purpose.

During the second annual service project, our Baton Rouge student-athletes focused on tackling the disparities of food insecurity by volunteering at various community organizations that routinely provide food, warmth, and friendship to those less fortunate.

Thursday, November 9

Southern Bowling and Southern Soccer kicked off our AFH Baton Rouge Serves With Purpose initiative at Baton Rouge Food Bank. Student-athletes checked expiration dates, sorted, and packaged food boxes for families ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.

The Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank is a nonprofit organization that solicits, procures, inventories, and warehouses donated food and other products. This food is then distributed to a variety of community agencies such as pantries, meal sites, homes, shelters, and soup kitchens that serve the people in need.

Today I helped Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank package food to help feed over 600 families. I served today in hope to give families better access to food and to give back to a community I am grateful to be able to support myself in.
Gia Johnson, Southern Soccer

Tuesday, November 14

During the second day of Baton Rouge Serves With Purpose, Southern Baseball contributed to closing the food insecurity gap in Baton Rouge. They assisted with the Metro Council District 6 Thanksgiving Turkey Giveaway hosted by Councilman Cleve Dunn.

After passing out turkeys to families in need, they continued their day of service at St. Vincent de Paul where they served over 100 dining room guests in need of a hot meal.

It’s not only about strikeouts and home runs. It’s about giving back and serving in the community
Coach Crenshaw, Southern Baseball

Thursday, November 16

Southern Bowling visited Louisiana Key Academy after going 8-0 in competition at the Sonic Boom Invitational. They led students through stretches, warm-up exercises, and bowling techniques. To close out their field day, students were able to put their skills to use with a game!

On the same day, Southern Soccer volunteered at St. Vincent de Paul’s annual donation drive held at Hi Nabor grocery store. Student-athletes assisted with collecting donations and educating grocery shoppers about the special event’s cause with some shoppers donating cash on the spot. At the end of their volunteer time, the student-athletes collected over $200 and baskets full of items for the food drive.

Today a couple of my teammates joined me in asking for donations for St. Vincent de Paul’s annual food drive. It brought me great joy to be able to help because I have experienced both sides of the cause, receiving and giving. We accepted monetary donations as well as items requested by St.Vincent de Paul. One family even donated a hundred dollar bill! It was amazing to experience the compassion that comes with doing this type of service
Ashanté Gatlin, SU Women’s Soccer

Friday, November 17

To close out our week-long service event, LSU Beach Volleyball players and coaches visited Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital to spend time with youth who will be spending their holidays in the hospital. There was no shortage of joy as our student-athletes were just as excited as the patients to visit rooms and read books during story time!

Volunteering at the children’s hospital was a very fulfilling experience. The kiddos were so engaging and full of giggles!
Gabi Bailey, LSU Beach Volleyball

The holiday season is a time when we can reflect on all that we are grateful for and this year our student-athletes haven’t stopped saying how grateful they are to be able to give back to their communities. Our student-athletes are already looking forward to our third annual Baton Rouge Serves With Purpose event, and until then, they are looking forward to positively impacting their community at the start of the new year.

AFH News

Posted: November 17, 2023 Updated: November 17, 2023 by Hannah Bronkema

What We’re Reading

November 4 – November 17, 2023

Every day, athletes all over the world are doing incredible work in their communities by giving back, creating opportunities for those less fortunate, and making connections that will last a lifetime.

There is so much good going on in the sports community! From new scholarships, baseball glove donations, men’s mental health, and more, here are five articles the AFH team has read over the past two weeks that you may have missed.

“Buffalo’s Damar Hamlin will use his foundation to award $1,000 scholarships in honor of 10 medical professionals who tended to him when he suffered a cardiac arrest on the field earlier this year.”

Read the full article on buffalobills.com.

“I’m happy to announce that I will be donating approximately 60,000 youth gloves to every elementary school in Japan,” Ohtani said. “That comes out to around 20,000 elementary schools. I’m hoping the kids can spend their days happily with a lot of energy through baseball.”

Read the full article on apnews.com.

“While spending a Wednesday evening jumping into a sandpit (the CanU kids’ favorite activity, said Reimer) or delivering hampers might seem like small gestures, both Reimer and Hutchinson-Campbell agree that the impact of CanU on the kids is immeasurable.”

Read the full article on umanitoba.com.

“Hardwick said men often suppress their emotions especially when balancing the challenges of work and family life. “For me, the healthier we are as individuals, the healthier we are going to be as dads, as workers, and as people who coach football or whatever we’re into.”

Read the full article on wishtv.com.

“Undisputed featherweight boxing world champion Alycia Baumgardner and Mayor Danny Sanchez hosted a Thanksgiving turkey giveaway for 75 local families on Nov. 9 at her alma mater, Fremont Ross High School.”

Read the full article at thenewsmessenger.com.

AFH Community Hero

Posted: November 15, 2023 Updated: November 15, 2023 by Hannah Bronkema

Strange uses his foundation as a “salute” to veterans

Cole Strange is no stranger to utilizing his platform to help brighten up others’ days. In 2022, Strange worked with the Athletes for Hope Hospital Heroes program to visit with kids at East Tennessee Children’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital.

However, the former first-round draft pick did not stop there. His recent work to support military veterans in need makes Cole Strange Athletes for Hope’s November Community Hero of the Month.

Strange has more often than not stayed out of the spotlight, simply putting his nose down and working hard. The strategy allowed him to thrive as a New England Patriot guard in the NFL after being drafted out of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Yet, once he realized how powerful his position as an athlete was, he knew he had to use it to help others.

After spending the last year and a half working alongside various military organizations, he created The Cole Strange Foundation in September of this year with an inaugural movie screening with 40 military veterans and their guests.

The purpose of the Cole Strange Foundation is to honor, support, and show appreciation for the sacrifices of military veterans by impacting the lives of those physically injured or facing mental health challenges.

This culminated in his first annual Evening to Salute Veterans on November 6, where Patriots players, board members, sponsors and supporters all showed up to help fulfill the foundation’s fundraising goals.

There was an auction portion and other fundraising efforts as the event took place at the Patriots’ Gillette Stadium. With teammates in attendance, footballs were signed and auctioned off as well as other items. Proceeds from the evening helped to provide mental health grants to military veterans in need through the foundation.

Strange knows that as an NFL player, it takes hard work to reach the professional level, but he also understands how much more difficult military service can be.

“It’s something I have a ton of respect for,” Strange said. “Growing up, it was always one of those things that I thought commanded a lot more respect than people playing in the NFL, even though that was always my dream. I love football, but this is life or death – real-world stuff, and I feel like it’s overlooked a lot.”

Many odds were stacked against Strange during his journey, and he is not one to shy away from adversity, but military service strikes a chord with his emotions.

Cole Strange may not enjoy the spotlight, but his foundation is a reason for pride. Congratulations to Cole on being named the AFH Community Hero of the Month for November.

AFH University Service Recognition

Posted: November 8, 2023 Updated: November 8, 2023 by Hannah Bronkema

October 2023 | Student-Athlete & Team of the Month

Each month we ask our AFH University campus liaisons for nominations of student-athletes and teams who excelled in service. Through our monthly nominations, we are able to acknowledge all of the good our student-athletes and teams are doing in their communities.

During the month of October, our Student-Athlete and Team of the Month challenged the status quo on what it means to serve as they created a holistic community with their peers and engaged in regular service in their North Carolina community.

Student-Athlete of the Month

Our October Student-Athlete of the Month is Erin Junkmann from Georgetown University. Erin is a community builder across the Georgetown campus, connecting others with mental health resources and creating other holistic ways to engage with peers.

“Erin has worked to connect the Georgetown female student-athletes in her role as president of the SAAC with opportunities to speak about mental health and connect with the brand SPRHA to unpack the shared aspects of the female student-athlete experience that impact performance, such as uniforms impacting the way we feel and care about our bodies thus limiting the way we play.

Erin has done a tremendous job creating a community and opportunities to connect with one another in a meaningful way, promoting our holistic well-being. Erin is also someone who consistently shows up to every athletic game she can watch on campus and unconditionally cheers on her fellow Hoyas.“

Team of the Month

The October Team of the Month is the Davidson field hockey team. Together the team has positively impacted their community in North Carolina through regular visits to Continuing the Mission.

“For the past three weeks, Davidson Field Hockey has been regularly visiting Continuing the Mission, an organization that trains dogs for veterans. They have been going 3-4 times a week to help with the animals and spend time training and playing with the puppies.

Their consistent service with the organization has been a tremendous help by exposing the dogs to different scenarios and aspects of life so that they make great partners to the veterans they will be adopted to.”

We are so proud of all of our AFH University campuses for the work they are doing to better their own communities each day!

AFH News

Posted: November 3, 2023 Updated: November 3, 2023 by Hannah Bronkema

What We’re Reading

October 17 – November 3, 2023

There is so much good going on in the sports community! From inspiring the next generation, new sports for good partnerships, a Halloween party for a good cause, and more, here are five articles the AFH team has read over the past few weeks that you may have missed.

“Akron native and NBA star LeBron James authored a new children’s book that shows children they are more than one label, interest or trait – they can do anything they set their minds to.”

Read the full article on cleveland.com.

“The latest space is Overtime Select, a four-week league for elite high school girls basketball players taking place during the summer of 2024 at OTE Arena, Overtime’s 103,000 square-foot facility in Atlanta, Georgia.”

Read the full article on espn.com.

“Make-A-Wish and Fanatics, a leading global digital sports platform, today announced a first-of-its-kind partnership in which Fanatics will become the wish-granting organization’s “Official Sports Partner.” Through the partnership, sports-related wishes in the U.S. will be granted under the co-brand of Fanatics Make-A-Wish.”

Read the full article on fanaticsinc.com.

“The New England Patriots Halloween party never disappoints, but this year, it was “out of this world.”

That was the theme for the annual celebration, where the Patriots Foundation, in partnership with the Revolution, hosted more than 40 local children battling cancer at Gillette Stadium on Tuesday.”

Read the full article on patriots.com.

“This is why supporting HBCU golf programs is core to both Eastside Golf’s and Mercedes-Benz USA’s brand missions. A couple of weeks ago, MBUSA served as the presenting sponsor for the Eastside Golf Invitational and donated $50,000 to the Morehouse Golf Program, which will continue to benefit from the partnership, including the provision of Sprinter vans to transport the golf team to their events.”

Read the full article on forbes.com.