George Washington University Athletics
GW Gymnastics Volunteers at DC Host an Athlete Day
10/29/2015 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
The George Washington gymnastics team participated in another community service initiative on Wednesday when it visited Brightwood Education Campus for DC Host an Athlete Day.
"DC Host an Athlete Day was an experience that involved our team visiting a school of younger children to show them how to be successful with two important things, having a positive attitude and eating healthy," said junior Chelsea Raineri.
"We were received by Mrs. Kubar, a GW alum," said senior Taylor Redmond. "She was very excited to meet us and was very happy at the end of the day about how many of her students had opened up to us."
The Colonials spent the morning teaching a mantra that is instilled within the GW gymnastics program - maintaining a positive attitude at all times.
"In pairs we visited pre-K, kindergarten, first and second grade classrooms to talk to the children about trying your best in school and having a positive attitude," said junior Kaitlin Cowles. "We told them a little about ourselves and how having a positive attitude, and eating healthy, helped us get to where we are as college student-athletes. We wanted to have them know that they can reach their goals as well."
The lessons also included physical activity to help promote being physically active and healthy.
"We started off by doing a stretching activity to get their attention, learn names and get to know the kids," said sophomore Sara Mermelstein.
"We also played warmup games and tried to relate to the children by explaining that a good attitude and eating healthy starts at a young age," said sophomore Alex Zois. "We had them tell us what kinds of fruits and vegetables they liked and had them try and guess our favorite fruits and vegetables. We talked about how eating healthy makes you grow up to be big and strong."
The GW gymnastics team is one of the most active among all 27 of GW's varsity teams with its service initiatives, and the impact that the team has on the surrounding communities, particularly on young children, is not lost on the Colonials.
"Visiting these classrooms showed me how much children of this age look up to athletes, which opens up the possibility for us to inspire them through our messages," said junior Kaila Solomon. "By embracing the position we are in as student-athletes, and taking advantage of all of the resources available to us, GW Athletics has the power to impact and motivate even the youngest members of our community."
"My biggest takeaway from the day is that, although we may not realize it, children look up to us and listen to what we have to say," said sophomore Cami Drouin-Allaire. "So speaking to them about the topics we touched on really does have an impact on them."
"I love working with kids because I believe they are genuinely excited about learning," said sophomore Jillian Winstanley. "Teaching children is always rewarding because they take what you say seriously and are eager to tell you what they learned and how they can implement it in their lives. My biggest takeaway was seeing the children interested, engaged and active in our discussions. I learned that even just taking a few hours of your time can make a huge difference in those you help, teach and serve."
Players Mentioned
