TAMIU Annual Report 2018

2018 Annual Report / IMPACT TAMIU student-athletes have a long tradition of giving back to the community and that commitment is as strong as ever as evidenced by the continuing community outreach efforts being made by these dedicated young people. Dustdevil student-athletes have recorded over 1,400 community service hours since January, attending 40 events serving 23 different community partners. Dustdevil student-athletes have benefited through interaction and service-learning with long-standing partnerships with community partners such as the South Texas Food Bank, Volunteers Serving the Need and the Bethany House. New partnerships are constantly being explored with the intention of exposing athletes to new service-learning opportunities. S E RV I N G / I M PA C T Student-Athletes Expand Giving Tradition TAMIUAthletics also supports two annual mainstay philanthropic causes, the Voz De Niños Christmas Toy Drive and TAMIU Baseball BBQ Military Appreciation event. Last April’s Baseball BBQ raised a record $2,360 for Building Homes for Heroes, a nonprofit organization that provides mortgage free homes to severely injured military members. TAMIU student-athletes have honored older military veterans by serving as hosts at the Laredo Veterans Heroes Flight Bon Voyage Ceremony at the Laredo International Airport for the last two years. The Hero Flight sends three Laredo veterans to Washington D.C. for an escorted tour of our great nation’s monuments and historical sites along with a visit with our federal representatives. Dustdevil student-athletes greet attendees of the Bon Voyage Ceremony, visit with the honorees and represent TAMIUAthletics in the community at large. TAMIU softball and men’s basketball athletes participated in the latest Hero Flight Ceremony in September. Making the trip on this year’s flight were WorldWar II veteran David Rankin, Korean War veteran and P.O.W. Manuel Ramírez and VietnamWar veteran Heriberto Saldívar. Photo by: Dr. Arturo Limón Veterans (L to R, front) Heriberto Saldívar, David Rankin and Manuel Ramírez are joined by TAMIU student-athletes. 24