We are so thankful for our Athletes for Hope University (AFH U) members and the great work that they all did this past month. To date this year, all of you have already tripled the number of service hours that student-athletes have given back to communities for the first few months of the school year! We are grateful for the incredible work that these teams do to support so many worthy causes.
Did you know? November was Pancreatic Cancer and Prematurity Awareness Month so many of our AFH U student-athletes were out supporting cancer or other childhood health and wellness events. Every month is a different awareness month so let us know if there’s a cause that is important to you so we can connect your team to that work.
The “Planksgiving” Challenge was in full steam with our Power Up! Program sites last month. Student-athletes encouraged kids at the Power Up! Schools to see how many of them could hold a plank for 30 seconds. Find out more about our Power Up! Program here. We are grateful for our partners at Nike for allowing us to continue to expand our work in the physical activity space through the Power Up! Program. Student-Athlete and Team of the Month: We sent out a link
Every month AFH U honors those showing dedication to service. This month, we highlight the Ohio State Cross Country team and Tulane Football’s Robert Kennedy for going above and beyond in their communities.
The Ohio State University Cross Country spent time over the summer with the Boys and Girls Club and volunteered with kids in the program. This fall, they have started doing monthly visits at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital and working with Girls on the Run. While they can only do one hospital visit a month due to hospital policies, they jump in and quickly book up as man visits as possible with the kids! They are enthusiastic about giving back to our community.
Robert Kennedy, from Tulane Football, was nominated due to his willingness to serve the New Orleans community. Robert’s most recent service endeavors include our Tulane Athletics Service Day, in which he made Halloween Cards and goodie bags for hospitalized children, playing sports with children at the YMCA, and taking part in a beautification project at Longue Vue House and Gardens. He is always willing to help.
We would not be able to do this incredible work without a base of funders supporting us. We are so thankful to our funders Nike and The Pennington Family Foundation, for enabling us to work in Louisiana communities and beyond. Their support over the last few years has been instrumental in the expansion of the AFH University program to even more sites and allowed AFHU athletes to give back in valuable and enriching ways. Thank you to Nike and Pennington Family Foundation for all you do for AFH U!