Student-Athletes Give Back to Community
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Nov. 7, 2003
Although the fall academic semester and athletic seasons have begun to wind down, our student-athletes continue to show dedication both on and off of the playing fields. The dedication of UVA student-athletes extends far beyond commitment to academics and athletics. Since August, our student-athletes have made a strong commitment to the University and to our local community. This dedication is reflective of the support they have given to a variety of volunteer activities in our community.
For example, many of our student-athletes have taken time to read to children at local elementary schools. This program, headed by Ryan Mooney from the Men’s Swimming and Diving team, is part of Wachovia’s First Reading Program that emphasizes to children the importance of reading. In addition, our student-athletes spend time every Monday afternoon visiting children at the Children’s Medical Center at University Hospital. Every week children at the hospital look forward to meeting the student-athletes, talking to them, and getting their autographs. The program is a huge success thanks to football player Davon Robb, and softball player Heather Field who help organize this weekly event.
Also this month, the Men’s Baseball Team and the Men’s Swimming and Diving Team provided service to the SPCA at their annual Rummage Sale. Both teams spent time helping to break down this event by packing and organizing items that were not sold at the sale.
On a different note, the Business Playbook will be put out at the end of this month by the Virginia Athletic Foundation. This playbook is a collection of resumes from graduating UVA student-athletes, and is sent out to employers to promote the many qualified and talented student-athletes that come from this University. Also, on November 6th a group of speaking specialists came to UVA to work with coaches, Olympic sport athletes, women’s basketball players, and football players on tips and strategies for interviewing with the media.