A day before competing in the 2016 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) Cross Country Championship, student-athletes from around the league spent their Thursday afternoon volunteering at Pilgrims’ Inn in Rock Hill, S.C.
Pilgrims’ Inn, a non-profit organization that serves Rock Hill and the surrounding communities of York County, S.C, is a shelter for homeless women and families. Pilgrims’ Inn’s mission is to provide shelter, assistance, and supportive services to the community’s most vulnerable citizens.
Over 40 cross country student-athletes from Clark Atlanta, Morehouse, Albany State and members of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) from Claflin represented the largest volunteer group that Pilgrims’ Inn has accommodated this year. Student-athletes participated in several volunteer opportunities on Thursday such as cleaning toys, beautifying the grounds, unloading food trucks, stocking the food pantry, and assembling furniture.
“Today has been amazing,” said Emily Ward, volunteer coordinator and administrative assistant at Pilgrims’ Inn. “I did not know that it was going to be this many people but we had enough projects for them to do. Everything that we have here is donated so for the student-athletes to donate their time means the world to us.”
“Today was awesome,” remarked Pamela Page, Clark Atlanta head men’s and women’s cross country coach. “We left a little early because we knew we committed to this but the kids had a great time. I think it’s a noteworthy thing that they did today to help out the women and children at the shelter.”
For more information about Pilgrims’ Inn and ways to help, CLICK HERE
The 2016 SIAC Cross Country Championship will take place on Friday, Oct. 21 at Winthrop University on the campus of Rock Hill, S.C. The men’s 8k race is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. (ET) and the women’s 5k race is slated to follow immediately. The awards ceremony is scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m.
Source: http://www.thesiac.com/news/2016/10/20/FBALL_1020163647.aspx