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Women's Lacrosse Team Raising Awareness for Lupus with 'Lacrosse for Lupus'
2/10/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
PROVIDENCE, RI - The Brown women's lacrosse team, which will
sponsor several service projects throughout the year, has plans for
a major fundraising initiative to benefit the Lupus Foundation. The
Bears are hosting two events this spring, beginning with a coaches'
clinic on February 21st, to raise awareness and money for the
Foundation. Chaired by junior Paris Waterman (Newark, DE), the
Lacrosse for Lupus committee and the rest of the team will also
sell t-shirts and wear special game jerseys for their Ivy opener
against Princeton on March 13th.
The first fundraiser for Lacrosse for Lupus is the Coaches Clinic
on February 21st. Six Division I college coaches (Brown, BU,
Bryant, Harvard, UNH, and Yale) will be at Brown running a coaches
clinic for middle school and high school coaches. All proceeds from
the clinic will go to the Lupus Foundation. The clinic flyer can be
found online at brownbears.com.
The next event is slated for March 13th, when the Bears host
Princeton in their 2010 Ivy opener. The team has a lot of exciting
plans slated for the afternoon, including a halftime ceremony
honoring all of Brown's former women's lacrosse All-Ivy and
Academic All-Ivy players. The Bears will be selling "Lacrosse for
Lupus" t-shirts, designed by sophomore Kaela McGilloway (Sea Cliff,
NY) and will wear "Lacrosse for Lupus" jerseys, which will be
auctioned off following the game. All proceeds from t-shirt sales
and the jersey auction will go to the Lupus Foundation.
Committee chair, Paris Waterman, shares her thoughts on the team's
Lupus fundraising efforts below:
Why is the team focusing on "Lacrosse for Lupus" this
year?
This year we chose to focus on Lupus because we felt like it is a
great cause to support. Lupus is a disease that often goes
unnoticed or isn't talked about and we thought that we could help
change that. We wanted to be able to support a cause by not only
fundraising but by also by creating awareness. When I presented the
idea of Lupus as our focus for this year I was really happy with
the enthusiasm and support I received from my teammates. It is
something that is really important to me and something I have a
personal connection with. In June 2008 my mother was diagnosed with
Lupus and since then I have become more aware of what Lupus is, the
effects, its prevalence, and the treatment (or lack thereof). I
learned that it is a disease of which the cause is still unknown,
over 1.5 million people (men, women, teens, and children) have
Lupus and more than 16,000 new cases are reported each year, and
that women, particularly women of color, are more likely to develop
the disease. However, the most striking discovery I came upon was
that there is no cure for Lupus. But even more importantly, it has
been over 50 years since a new drug has been introduced to control
the symptoms of Lupus primarily because it became a "forgotten"
disease, taking a back seat to diseases such as AIDS/HIV and Cancer
with regards to funding for research and development. Today my
mother is prescribed the same medications that Lupus patients were
prescribed in the 1960's and with our efforts as a team this year
we hope that we can take strides towards beginning to change that,
not only for her, but for the many people across America that are
affected by this disease.
What does having "Lacrosse for Lupus" as our 2009 - 2010
main service project mean to you?
Having Lacrosse for Lupus as our main service project gives me a
feeling that words can't describe. It's an overwhelming feeling to
have the support of my teammates in supporting a cause that is so
close to my heart. The energy and time that our team has put into
this project is amazing and to know that they really do care and
want to make a difference is amazing. It truly is amazing to see
the impact that one team can have. Each one of the women on the
team is so invested in this project, wholeheartedly cares about
this cause, and has taken on this project with such energy,
compassion, and hope. I know how strong our team is and with
Lacrosse for Lupus, I am confident that we can create change and
make a greater impact then we ever expected. I am extremely
thankful for my teammates and coaching staff for their dedication
to making this project the best it can be and I really think that
this will be one of the best projects the Brown Women's Lacrosse
team has ever done!
