There is one theme that spans over the holiday season and brings joy to people all around the world—giving. Bucknell Student-Athlete Enrichment alongside the 27 Bison sports teams have participated in several community engagement initiatives during this year's holiday season, in order to bring some of that joy to a community that has supported them all year long.
Starting back in October, Bucknell Student-Athlete Enrichment partnered with football player Terian Williams’ non-profit organization, ‘It Takes a Village Family Foundation’, to host a Halloween Stick or Treat event. This event was held for kids around the community to come and enjoy some Halloween activities and candy. Athletes organized the event and manned different stations throughout the evening including; face painting, pumpkin decorating, games, trick-or-treating and more.
As the clock quickly turned and November hit its peak, the athletes took part in a Turkey & Trimmings event ahead of Thanksgiving. In partnership with Bucknell’s Center for Community Engaged Leadership, Learning & Research Turkey & Trimmings initiative, Student-Athlete Enrichment and all 27 teams were able to donate over 20 Thanksgiving baskets to the cause. Each of those baskets provides a Thanksgiving meal to a family of four. Our area faces high rates of food insecurity with more than one in eight people in Snyder, Union and Northumberland counties living in poverty and with the work from our university, we were able to provide 143 baskets in total amongst seven different community partners which served 583 of our community members.
The frigid air crept into Lewisburg hinting at the winter holidays being near, but the Bison participated in one more initiative before their break began. Spearheaded by the Alpha Lambda Delta Society on campus, coaches, athletes and staff throughout Bucknell's athletic department came together to adopt three agencies and fulfill their holiday gift requests through the Giving Tree Initiative. The first agency that athletics adopted was Big Brothers and Big Sisters, whose initiative is “to create and support mentoring relationships that help all young people reach their potential.” As a whole, the teams alongside Student-Athlete Enrichment were able to support 20 kids from their local Big Brothers and Big Sisters chapter. They also adopted the SUMMIT Early Learning agency, whose initiative is “building the future through early care and education, one family at a time.” The Bison were able to support three families and their holiday gift requests from here. The final agency that athletics adopted was the Getting Ahead Foundation, whose mission is to “support families who are ready to begin moving toward freedom from poverty” and they are “committed to building strong, resilient communities through programs that inspire confidence, connections and lasting change.” The group of athletics was able to provide food boxes for 20 Getting Ahead Foundation families this holiday season.
Bucknell Student-Athlete Enrichment and the 27 athletics teams on campus are dedicated to supporting its local community all year long and will continue to work hard to engage and support the community that they represent both on and off the field.
Bison Club support is the driving force behind Bucknell Athletics. Your donations directly impact the holistic development of student-athletes from 27 Division I varsity programs who are building a foundation at Bucknell to become leaders and difference-makers around the globe. Make your gift online, or call 570-577-1771 to support your favorite Bison team. 'ray Bucknell!