The Spring 2016 semester proved to be an eventful one for the Sport Public Relations (SMGT 466) class as eight different groups of students planned and executed Community Relations projects. This semester’s projects ranged from volunteering time to raising nearly $3500 to fund various charities in the Houston area.
Enrique Walsh, Meyrav Levy, and Ali Pineiro hosted a FIFA tournament on campus raising over $700 for The House that Ching Built, a Houston-area charity that builds homes for families in need. With incentives such as gift cards from Torchy’s Tacos and Rice Village’s Soccer4All store, the group was able to fill a 64 man bracket for the tournament. A special guest appearance by Brian Ching, the Houston Dynamo’s all-time leading scorer, helped to make the event a truly memorable one.
Jowan Davis, Robby Wells, Peter Godber, and Cole Hunt decided to create a ping pong tournament in order to raise money for the Red Cross. By organizing a 32-person tournament, they managed to raise almost $600 to donate to the Red Cross. Winners of the tournament received gift cards to Academy Sports + Outdoors, Torchy’s Tacos, and Rice Coffeehouse.
Griffin Lee, Colton Torrance, and Scott Filip organized a shoe drive in order to collect gently used shoes to donate to the Star of Hope Foundation, which is based in Houston. They were able to collect over 100 pairs of like-new shoes.
Amalya Lewinson partnered with the Rice Black Student Association to create a campus tour event for 50 local elementary age children. Students from Young Elementary who excelled in and out of the classroom, came on to campus for a day of learning and fun. Students walked the campus, spoke to police officers about safety, and learned about opportunities to study internationally. Lewinson and her fellow association members helped to create a lasting relationship with Young Elementary.
Kevin Reilly, Pax Kaplan-Sherman, and Marcus Jackson created a raffle in order to raise money to donate to Star of Hope. With prizes ranging from Rodeo Houston tickets to gifts from Official Fan Package, the group was able to donate $500. With this money, Star of Hope will be able to help women and children in need of a safe place to live.
Josh Pettitte, Grayson Lewis, and Blake Fox, all members of Rice’s baseball team, organized a toy drive in conjunction with one of their games. With help from hard-working volunteers and the generous donations of Rice baseball fans, they were able to collect over 200 toys and $1,680 which was donated to the Center of Abused Children.
William Carter, Kenneth Thompson, Taylor Knopf, and Darrion Pollard organized a group to volunteer at the Houston Furniture Bank, an organization that donates new and used furniture to families in need. By dedicating their time to the Bank, the group was able to help recycle old furniture, which is refurbished and turned into furniture which is given to families in need.
Zachary Yablon, Adam Gustafsson, and Connor Leisz partnered with the men’s tennis team and an organization called Bennett’s Bears. Bennett Nester is a 5-year-old battling pediatric brain cancer and is also an honorary member of the men’s tennis team. As part of the men’s tennis match, teddy bears were sold at the gate and after doubles play was over, each buyer could throw the bear onto the court, where they were collected. Upon collection, the group gave the bears to children’s hospitals across the area, to help bring a smile to a child in need.
Ty Carter, a junior from Houston, Texas, is majoring in Sport Management and minoring in Business.