Ridge Point Fall 2023 Volleyball

go one to amazing things in various professions. We have young women who have gone one to have successful careers on the court, but also a community impact in health care, law, media, coaching, civic services, teaching, first responders so on and so forth. Connecting those amazing former Panthers, with current Panthers in the name of Charity and giving back to the community just made the idea come full circle. It should be lauded, and that’s why we’re doing it.” Smith and co-director Rosemary Cook, whose daughter Carrington is a senior (Radford University Commit) on the current team, are busy professionals and parents but that didn’t deter them from making time to make this event come to life. “The amount of calls and conversations, I can’t (enumerate),” Cook said. We talked to so many partners, so many vendors, because we had to have jackets, rings, linens, china, flatware, speakers; there was so much advice and in-kind support from the community. That’s how this charter became as successful as it was.”

The weekend began with The Reading With The Panthers Literacy event. Current and former Panther Volleyball players visited Heritage Rose Elementary School, interacting with every single student to promote literacy on Friday, the 19th; they gave out over 4,000 age appropriate books in combination with a program wide book drive and in partnership with Books Between Kids, which the athletes picked up and transported to HRE themselves; read books to the children; and gave out bookmarks provided by Raising Cane’s – which doubled as a reading incentive. Students who read a required number of books can redeem it for a free Cane’s meal. Panther players later suited up and competed in the “Stars vs. Legends” charity match that evening; and taught aspiring young volleyball players during the Panthers Youth Volleyball Camp at the Ridge Point gym the next day from 9AM-1PM. Then, it was time to get gussied up for the main event that evening. “The idea started when

14 AT THE NET • FALL 2023