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Liberty student-athletes give back throughout the fall semester

Liberty student athletes at the 47th annual Virginia 10 Miler, supporting runners and walkers during the race

As has become tradition in Liberty University’s Athletics and Club Sports departments, student-athletes faithfully volunteered this fall to serve those in need throughout the Lynchburg community.

Every September, Liberty Athletics teams raise funds for the Dollar Makes A Difference (DMAD) Campaign to purchase supplies for Lynchburg area schools. This year, student-athletes raised $4,461; the women’s lacrosse team set a new record for team collection with $1,841.

“The Dollar Makes A Difference Campaign is such a special and unique opportunity for Liberty athletes to serve in the Lynchburg community,” said Liberty Lacrosse senior Lizzy Ferguson, president of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC). “We want to help the children get the most out of their education by ensuring they have all the supplies necessary. I am very proud of the athletes from each team. Because of their diligence, we were able to provide school supplies and other necessities to local elementary schools. Our hope is to see that number grow each year and be able to bless more people with the donations we receive.”

On Sept. 25, the women’s basketball and men’s and women’s track & field and taekwondo teams volunteered at the 47th annual Virginia 10 Miler, supporting runners and walkers during the race. Taekwondo team members also raised funds for Miriam’s House, a Lynchburg organization that helps the homeless find housing, and they assisted in moving furniture, assembling shelves, and doing yard work there.

When the Flames’ ACHA Division II men’s hockey team traveled to play Rowan (N.J.) University, players and coaches helped a family clear debris from a devastating tornado that swept through the area.

In early October, Liberty Athletics participated in College Football Mental Health Week with the Hilinski’s Hope Foundation. The initiative coincided with Mental Illness Awareness Week (Oct. 3-9) and honored Tyler Hilinski, a red-shirt sophomore quarterback at Washington State who committed suicide after the 2018 season. Liberty Athletics provided wristbands for student-athletes, coaches wore pins, and football players donned decals on their helmets. The whole goal of the week was to raise awareness and help break the stigma around mental illness, especially in college football and college athletics.

At the end of October, Liberty student-athletes participated in Trick or Treat So Others Can Eat, a canned food drive. They collected 1,627 cans that were distributed to Lynchburg area organizations that provide hunger relief.

During the weekend of Sept. 24-25, when the Flames’ ACHA Division II men’s hockey team traveled to play Rowan (N.J.) University, players and coaches helped a family clear debris from a devastating tornado that swept through the area, in the same neighborhood where senior defenseman JD George lives. They also prayed with a homeowner who is battling cancer.

During the week leading up to the LendingTree Bowl, Flames Football players split off into smaller groups to pack meals for both Feeding the Gulf Coast and Prodisee Pantry in Mobile, Ala., before facing Eastern Michigan on the gridiron.

Following Christmas Break, Liberty’s student-athletes will look to their next service initiative, Share the Warmth, where donations of coats, gloves, scarves, and hats are collected for those in need.

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