GSC SAAC volunteers with Camp 119 at St. Vincent's Hospital
Birmingham, Ala. - The Gulf South Conference and its Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) kicked off their annual meetings on Wednesday, July 27, highlighted by a visit to St. Vincent's Hospital on Thursday, July 28.
The conference hosted the 20+ SAAC members representing all of its schools, spanning over five different states, from Wednesday to Friday, July 27-29. The student-athletes gained valuable experience in leadership, professional and social growth, community service, financial strategies and networking.
The meetings kicked off with an orientation and a great presentation by Josh Etress of
Wildsparq and how "Healthy Things Grow" at the
Wynfrey Hotel on Wednesday, July 27. The day capped off with a dinner and five rounds of trivia at Baumhower's Restaurant.
On Thursday, July 28, the SAAC, along with representatives from the GSC, attended a community service engagement in which the student-athletes spent a few hours with 75 children at the
Camp 119, in conjunction with
St. Vincent's Hospital.
The group split off into groups for visitations and Q&A sessions with two groups, the 5-8 year-olds and 9-12 year-olds. The engagement included a series of games and relay races and concluded with an autograph session in which the SAAC signed
custom event cards for the children.
The SAAC meetings continued after lunch on Thursday, and featured presentations by Pam Jones of
Make-A-Wish, that included 'Wish Kid' Hannah, her mom, Katrina, and a local volunteer, Amanda. The group spoke to the student-athletes on the process that goes into granting wishes and shared various success stories and videos. Following a break, David Anthony of
Raymond James, the GSC's corporate sponsor for its GSC Champions Club, spoke to the group of the importance of their "Financial Future". The day concluded with dinner at Jim 'n Nick's BBQ Restaurant.
Six GSC SAAC student-athletes were selected for its annual "GSC SAAC Spotlights" on Thursday as well. The spotlights will feature one of six on a monthly basis and all will be highlighted in the brand new GSC SAAC commercial, which will run during GSC Football TV Games of the Week on ESPN3/Watch ESPN, presented by
Florida's Space Coast. The group of six will include:
Kenny Moore (Valdosta State),
Karisa Kostecki (West Florida),
Kip Owens (Alabama Huntsville),
Sam Burrus (Lee),
Brad Louis (West Alabama) and
Katie Reid (Mississippi College).
Friday, July 29, began with a great presentation by Justin Harris of
FireSeeds in which he preached to the group the importance of "How to Lead Change". The GSC and SAAC held its annual
business meeting before lunch, led by GSC SAAC President
Kayla Robles (Valdosta State) and
Jacob Tucker (North Alabama). Robles gave her National SAAC Report, Tucker offered up advice on SAAC expectations for social media and conducting one-self on campus. The group also voted in a new Vice-Chair, selecting
Kip Owens of Alabama Huntsville. The meeting ended with sport and league updates for 2016-17, a Q&A with GSC Commissioner
Matt Wilson and lunch at the Wynfrey Hotel.
Click
HERE for the official 2016 GSC SAAC Meetings/Community Service Engagement Facebook Album.