Photo above: Scott Masterson being presented with the award following the CCAA’s ‘Hall of Fame’ banquet.
OTTERBURNE, MB – We are pleased to announce that our Providence University College athletics teams were awarded the Canadian Collegiate Athletics Association (CCAA) ‘Community Service Award’ this year. This award has been presented annually since 2000, recognizing a member institution that has successfully developed and administered a community relations program.
While attending the CCAA annual general meeting and banquet in Halifax, Scott Masterson, VP Operations and Director of Athletics, received the award on behalf of our Pilots teams yesterday. Providence is the first institution from the Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference (MCAC) to receive a CCAA member award.
“We are extremely grateful to be chosen as this year’s CCAA Community Service Award recipient,” said Masterson. “There are many aspects of our athletics program that we are proud of, however, providing opportunities for our athletes to get real-world, hands-on experience in serving others is a key foundation of our program.”
Every academic year, more than 90 Providence athletes on our varsity Pilots teams serve local communities by conducting sports clinics, visiting youth drop-in centres, participating in food drives, and working alongside inner city organizations such as the Winnipeg Bear Clan Patrol.
Developing the Total Athlete
Each Pilots team does eight to 10 service projects a year. In total, the combined efforts of our varsity athletes add up to 2,000+ hours of service in Southern Manitoba. The philosophy of the Athletics Department is to build the “total athlete” which includes training for the whole body, tending to the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health of our players.
Everything starts with the Athletics Department’s Refuel program that provides ongoing leadership training to our athletes. They work with our in-house leadership director, meet regularly with their small-group team leaders, and attend scheduled sessions with a line-up of motivational speakers such as former NHL players, Olympic athletes, and chaplains of professional teams.
Building Strategic Community Partnerships
From there, Providence Athletics builds partnerships with local, non-profit organizations across Southern Manitoba and sends our athletes out into the communities to serve.
“Servant leadership is something that our athletes will be able to bring with them to whatever communities they move to in the future,” affirms Masterson. “We are grateful to have an opportunity to work together with our athletes to serve our local communities while they are part of our program. Ultimately, we are thankful for the many great organizations who are already doing great work in our local communities and that they are willing to allow us to partner with them to make a real difference in the lives of others.”
This year, our Pilots partnered with more than 15 community organizations providing a helping hand where needed and making a direct impact on the people and communities they’ve served along the way.
If you’d like to learn more about our Athletics program at Providence, visit prov.ca/athletics or follow us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
