Student-Athletes Begin Fall Season Serving Others
Principia athletes arrived on campus one week prior to the start of preseason training to serve the Alton and St. Louis communities. A great opportunity for the teams to bond while putting others first, it’s a perfect way to start the season.
The women’s soccer team kicked off Giving Week by overhauling Hampton Garden, a community garden in Alton. Aided by weed whackers, lawn mowers, and chain saws, the players transformed the plot from a dense weed forest to a manicured community garden. Garden neighbor Akeem Mosley and Greg Norris, founder and Director of ACES 4 Youth, worked alongside the team, and local businesses contributed doughnuts for the workers and flowers to plant in the cleared space.
Another day, the women's soccer team spent time at one of their favorite places to volunteer—the Oasis Women's Shelter, a safe home for battered women that has served the Alton community for over 30 years. The shelter was getting new dressers, which provided a perfect opportunity for the players to haul the old dressers down—and the new ones up—several flights of tight, winding stairs. “Being able to talk to the women living at the shelter gave even more purpose to the team’s task,” commented Assistant Coach Nicole Gervais (C’01).
Meanwhile, the volleyball and cross country teams collaborated at Peace Haven Association, a Christian Science care facility in St. Louis, tackling several cleanup projects, including weeding in the garden and washing vans. But their main focus was engaging with residents, who loved the interaction—from playing ping-pong and noodle balloon ball to getting their nails painted to watching a skit the players had prepared. After dinner, everyone joined in a hymn sing. “It was so fun to see the College students spread out all over the facility, engaging in conversation and games with the residents,” says Assistant Volleyball Coach Heather Fairbanks (C’05). “Smiles were everywhere, and it was tough to leave at the end of the night because everyone was having a great time getting to know each other!”
Opportunities like these will continue throughout the year as the Athletics Department initiates “hybrid Wednesdays”—time set aside for teams to serve in the community. Athletics Director Pete Paciorek, who wrote Character Loves Company—Defining the Teachable Moments in Sports: A Guidebook to Character Literacy Development, is as passionate about providing service opportunities for Principia student-athletes as he is about improving athletic performance. “Fostering a giving heart in all our student-athletes goes hand in hand with character development,” he says. “We’ve always had a good relationship with the Boys & Girls Club in Alton, for example, and I want to grow that. Sometimes athletes get caught up in themselves, and there’s really nothing more impactful than having them step outside of themselves and give to others.”
This story was compiled from reporting by Heather Fairbanks, Director of Athletics Communications.