Ryan Ball, a member of the swimming and diving team, collects a donation at the Nov. 7 football game as part of the annual Toys for Tots drive.
The Cowboy and Cowgirl sports programs provide cheers and memories for University of Wyoming fans. But away from the bright lights of the field and court, these young men and women provide valuable services to people in Laramie, the state of Wyoming and the globe.
UW student-athletes exemplify a spirit of giving back—taking part in canned food drives, clothing drives, toy drives, statewide sports camps and highway cleanup. In the last year, individuals donated nearly 4,300 hours of community service, providing for local food banks, clothing dispensaries and youth centers.
Sophomore hurdler Mikalah Skates of Casper, Wyo., has been a part of outreach activities since she arrived on campus in 2014.
“I’ve been blessed to have a really nice life and am fortunate to have things that others don’t, so I feel it’s important to give back to those who don’t have,” she says. “It’s about helping others and making sure everyone else has opportunities.”
Skates is involved in the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) at UW. The organization helps plan events for student-athletes to give back.
“We have been incredibly fortunate here with the character of student-athletes our coaches recruit,” says Peter Prigge, UW athletics director of compliance and administrative liaison for SAAC. “Our student-athletes really buy into the fact that they are representatives of this state in everything they do. Every Wyoming fan is a stakeholder in our success as a department, and our student-athletes really enjoy giving back to the community that has embraced them.”
The list goes on. In June 2014, a group of nearly 60 UW football players, coaches and UW employees helped in flood-prevention efforts in Saratoga, Wyo., when the swollen North Platte River threatened homes and businesses in the small town.
The UW Spirit Team participates in a number of community service activities, including weekly volunteer work at the Laramie Soup Kitchen.
There’s a global impact, too. Since 2012, UW football players and assorted student-athletes from other UW teams and students have traveled to Haiti to aid in ongoing rebuilding efforts from a devastating earthquake in 2010. The trip also honors the memory of Ruben Narcisse, who was a freshman on the Cowboy football team when he was killed in an automobile collision on Sept. 6, 2010.
Kayla Henderson of Marietta, Ga., a senior on the Wyoming volleyball team, also is involved with SAAC. She’s been part of the various drives for supplies.
“Everyone gets really, really into it, which is the fun part of it,” she says. “For me, it’s important. I love doing community service and bringing people together for a good cause.”
Expect the good works to continue and, in some ways, increase. The opportunity to do good in her community is always on Henderson’s mind.
“A lot of people just want to join in from every team,” she says. “We know how much the community supports us, so we want people to know we are there to support them as well.”
Notable community service events year-round help Wyoming athletics give back to the state.
Gatorade Pong: Student-athlete tournament/Halloween costume party to serve as a canned food drive. Dodgeball tournament: Student-athlete tournament to serve as canned food drive. Result: Canned food drives in 2014–15 garnered more than 500 cans, donated to local food bank.
Toys for Tots collection: Three collection days, including a drive at a UW football game. Result: Toy and stocking stuffers totaled 45 items for more than 30 children, and cash/check donations totaled $4,303.07 in 2014–15.
Undie Run clothing drive: Family-friendly event in which student-athletes brought clothes to donate, competed on an obstacle course and discarded items of clothing as they progressed. Result: The drive collected more than 130 items of clothing, including shirts, shoes, shorts and pants in 2014–15.
