@OW_Panthers Cross Country lends hand to those in need at Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service

By: Courtesy of Old Westbury Sports Information (written by Harris Rappel)

General | 2/24/2017 6:52:00 PM

OLD WESTBURY, NY --- (www.OLDWESTBURYPANTHERS.com) SUNY Old Westbury men's and women's cross country joined forces with the student body on February 24 to compile comfort kits for victims and survivors of sexual and interpersonal violence as part of Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, a call to the service initiative by the Corporation for National and Community Service. The event was sponsored by the Omicron Delta Kappa Student Leadership Honor Society, who were awarded a 2017 Maurice A. Clay Leadership Development Initiative Grant of $500 for the project.

The goal of the service project was to illustrate through hands-on experience the importance of conducting civic engagement activities and the positive power of what service can mean to the people and communities in which the students reside. The comfort kits were inspired by the State University of New York's "SUNY's Got Your Back" program, where backpacks are filled with personal care items, and delivered to shelters and centers across Long Island. Students also wrote anonymous messages of support to the comfort kit recipients. Items and funds were donated by King Kullen, Target, SUNY System Administration, the Division of Student Affairs, Enrollment Services, the Library, and the Residence Hall Association.

"It felt great to bring comfort to those in need," said SUNY Old Westbury head men's and women's cross country coach Jeff Labiento. "This rewarding experience showed our student-athletes that volunteering a few hours of their time goes a long way."

Labiento, along with cross country student-athletes Kwasi Asare, Ricardo Carrero-Sagona, Joseph Cueter, Richard Forkuo, Harseerat Kohli, Jennifer Lobody, Divine Nisbeth, Habiba Nofal and Keturah Sibblies all participated in the event.

This is the fourth year that Old Westbury has participated in Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, with previous projects including the creation of disaster preparedness kits and care packages for the needy, and activity kits for children in a local hospital.

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