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EOU
President witnesses more than just basketball
Dr. Dixie Lund shares her unique perspective of Mountaineer team
members during a clinic with local Sioux City youths
March 9, 2004
SIOUX CITY, Iowa - The
following is an e-mail the was sent from EOU President Dr. Dixie Lund
as she travels with the Mountaineer women's basketball team at the
NAIA Women's Division II National Basketball Tournament.
Today, the teams
were given an opportunity to spend time with the City's special
education and drug rehabilitating youth in Tyson Center where the
tournament begins tomorrow morning. Only a small number of the
32 teams in this tournament responded to this opportunity--among
them, EOU's women's basketball team, thanks to Coach Anji
Weissenfluh.
I was very proud to see them reaching out in this way and believe
you all would have been too. They were on the court for about
1-1/2 hours, tossing the ball, leading the kids through drills, and
running relay races with them. The smiles on the faces of the
special education kids were priceless, and the drug rehabilitating
youth also "got into the swing of things" with our team
after a bit of coaxing.
This activity put any "gotta-win" pressure of
intercollegiate athletics into a very different light; our team and
the others who participated really reached out to a group of young
people who are facing numerous challenges beyond what we can readily
imagine. Tomorrow, the team visits an elementary school in the
Sioux City area to encourage the youth to excel in school and
especially to stay in school. Be proud of your EOU Women's
Basketball Team...they are representing all of us extremely well.
The NAIA encourages
teams to participate in local community events that enhance each
team's trip and share in the NAIA's "National Championship
Experience".
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