Student-athletes blanket hospital kids with attention

The UW-Green Bay Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) recently made 16 tie blankets for the children at the Pediatric Hematology Cancer Clinic at St. Vincent Hospital in Green Bay.

Phoenix SAAC members spent an evening in November tying the blankets in the Kress Events Center and then delivered them to St. Vincent on Monday, Nov. 28.

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Also assisting with the project were UW-Green Bay administrative assistant Debbie Sanders, who prepared and donated the blankets for the student-athletes to tie, and athletics ticket director Marilyn McCarey, who proposed the idea. McCarey has been knitting and donating blankets to St. Vincent for the past five years.

“The student-athletes and the members of the athletics department who helped make this donation possible really show how being a student-athlete at Green Bay is about more than the practices and games,” said Justin Pollnow, Assistant Athletics Director for Compliance/Student Services and SAAC adviser. “Being a student-athlete at UW-Green Bay also entails a strong commitment to the community. We hope the blankets put smiles on the children’s faces. It was a great experience for all involved and we look to replicate this activity in the near future.”

Green Bay’s SAAC consists of 32 student-athletes from the school’s 16 Division I sports. The group participates in several community service projects throughout the year, helping Green Bay Athletics accumulate more than 4,000 community service hours annually.

Those interested in helping Green Bay SAAC with future projects or donations can contact Justin Pollnow at pollnowj@uwgb.edu or (920) 465-2837.

– Story and photos by Ryan Hartwig, Assistant Director of Athletics Communications