FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
All 21 Purple Knights' Programs Help to Pen Letters to Service Men and Women
COLCHESTER, Vt. - Saint Michael's student-athletes have written more than 200 holiday letters for members of the military through A Million Thanks due to the coordination efforts of the College's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), with all 21 athletic programs getting involved in the cause. Purple Knights also penned more than 200 letters last winter holiday season in what has become a fourth-annual tradition for SAAC.
Nearly eight million letters have been sent through A Million Thanks since then-15-year-old Shauna Fleming started the letter-writing campaign in March 2004 in Orange, Calif. The initial goal was to collect and distribute one million thank you letters to troops serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, and the cause has continued to flourish. A Million Thanks asks individuals, schools, churches, businesses and other organizations to write cards, letters, emails and prayer messages of appreciation for U.S. military, past and present. The goal is to see that military - active, reserve and veterans - receive these messages, whether they are serving at home, abroad, or are injured in hospitals.
The A Million Thanks organization has more than 50 official letter drop-off locations nationwide to expand its efforts. Fleming also started two additional missions to the organization: granting wishes of military injured in the War on Terror, and funding higher education scholarships to children of fallen military. For more information, visit amillionthanks.org.
This feature is part of the NE10's Embrace the Impact week which runs from Monday, December 18 through Friday, December 22. One of the tenents of the NE10's recently-introduced branding campaign is 'Our Character Remains Undefeated'. The headline speaks directly to the league's commitment to community-service efforts, and how it is a hallmark of the league and what it stands for: that the NE10's student-athletes exhibit great character; they conduct themselves with integrity on and off the field of play through hard work.
Schedule of Embrace the Impact Releases:
Monday - Southern New Hampshire 'Joy Jars'
Tuesday - Adelphi Women's Basketball Adds Bianca to it's Roster through Team IMPACT
Wednesday - Franklin Pierce Joins Forces with Special Olympics
Thursday - Saint Rose SAAC 'Adopts a Family'
Friday - Saint Michael's Holiday Letters through A Million Thanks
Information and photos for this release provided by the athletic communications staff at Saint Michael's
ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 15 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete. Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.