“Here, the personal interaction with professors is enriching and you find friendship with them.”
Flying Feet: Cross Country squad sends shoes around the world
Megan McClowry '10 spent her summer in Uganda.
This season the Belles Cross Country team has banded together to serve the people of Uganda. The team hosted its second annual Alumnae Race last Saturday, a 5K that included students and alumnae. Part of the event involved the team’s service project. They collected a pair of shoes from each Alumnae Race participant to send to the Holy Cross missions in Uganda, where the shoes will be given to people who need them.
The service project is the brainchild of Cross Country co-captain Megan McClowry ‘10. Megan spent her summer in Kyarusozi, Uganda, living with the Sisters of the Holy Cross. A nursing major, Megan was part of Saint Mary’s new Uganda Summer Practicum with the Sisters for senior education and nursing majors. “While there, I worked in a clinic every day, putting in IVs, giving vaccinations, dispensing medications,” says Megan. Her experience providing medical care for people in the city and far-away villages led her to develop the service project in conjunction with the Alumnae Race.
Cross Country coach Jackie Bauters ’04 says the race and service project are a great way for the team to make connections with alumnae and support the “family” atmosphere of the team and the College. “If you ask almost any cross country runner, I imagine one of the things they enjoy most about the sport is the feeling of family and connectedness it creates,” she says. “Alumnae are also great ties to our current students’ future and can build the relationships that help start their careers.”