RICHARDSON, Texas –– Each American Southwest Conference member Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) not only keeps active in the classroom and the athletic arena, but is active volunteering in their local communities. Listed below is a sample of the projects -- completed and planned -- the conference SAAC groups have been involved with during the fall 2006 semester.

Women's basketball players from Ozarks interact with local children during their "Halloween Hoops" night in Clarksville, Ark.
Members of LeTourneau's women's basketball team pause for a photo before preparing and serving a meal for 30 people at the Highway 80 Rescue Mission in Longview, Texas.
Louisiana College athletes work together to clean up the Pineville, La., campus for the visit of former President George H. W. Bush.

UNIVERSITY OF THE OZARKS
Teams at the University of the Ozarks used fall holidays to focus on the Clarksville area. On Halloween, the women’s basketball game hosted “Halloween Hoops” for local children and provided multiple games. The softball and cross country teams served Thanksgiving dinner at the Johnson County Senior Center. In December, the entire Ozarks Athletic Department donated and delivered canned goods to a Johnson County Meals on Wheels project

Several long-term projects will be undertaken after the semester break. The Eagles baseball team will read books to children at local elementary schools. Pen-pal programs are planned by the women's soccer and both men's and women's tennis teams. Soccer will correspond with middle school students while tennis will share letters with students in local elementary schools.

MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE
Before Thanksgiving, the SAAC sponsored a food drive to help provide Thanksgiving dinners to those in need. Brown paper bags placed throughout the campus and Clinton community were filled with non-perishable food items and cash contributions. MC athletes, who spread the word of the vent to the community as well as the entire campus, picked up the brown bags and delivered the food donations to 20 families. The money collected was used to purchase a turkey for each of the 20 families.

LETOURNEAU
The fall months were busy ones for teams at LeTourneau. On October 29, the men’s and women’s golf teams participated in a First Tee outing in Longview. First Tee, a community outreach program to minority children by the Professional Golf Association of America, included a golf clinic and a small tournament for the participants. The Jackets men’s basketball team played games of a different sort as they volunteered at the Longview Community Center and assisted in a day of games for the children of the community. The women’s basketball team spent a Saturday volunteering at the Highway 80 Rescue Mission. The LadyJackets helped clean and re-stock the pantry and freezer as well as prepared and served lunch to a group of 30 who came to the mission. The SAAC hosted a tailgate party for all LeTourneau student-athletes, preparing the food for the event which included a presentation by former professional basketball player Alvin Davis.

LOUISIANA COLLEGE
Mondays in the fall meant more than practice for the Wildcats football team. Throughout the season the football team made visits to a local nursing home sharing talk and friendship with residents. On October 6, student-athletes from the 12 Louisiana College varsity teams as well as faculty and staff teamed up with the LC maintenance crew to clean the campus in preparation for the Centennial Celebration visit of former President George H. W. Bush. All volunteers planted plants after pulling weeds and collecting trash. On Halloween, LC baseball players visited two local hospitals in Alexandria delivering candy to the children unable to trick-or-treat.