Dear UCLA Rec,
I hope this message finds you well. I am writing to inform you of the wonderful
people UCLA has in the lacrosse program!
My name is Sarah Rafferty and I recently began Viper Lacrosse Antelope
Valley for underserved and underprivileged children in the areas of Lake Los
Angeles, Lancaster, Littlerock, Palmdale and Pearblossom. Our goal is to foster
education, teach self-sufficiency and encourage college. We aim to empower all
children of the Antelope Valley to learn through sportsmanship they can
become leaders, no matter their background or socioeconomic status.
If you're not familiar with the Antelope Valley, we are at the edge of north Los
Angeles county, about an hour and a half from UCLA. Our area's families are
mostly poverty to below poverty level. Our schools in Lancaster alone, have at
least 10% of their student population considered homeless and 6% foster.
This is where your UCLA Lacrosse Program has come into the picture showing
our children just how amazing it is!
My first contact with UCLA was Charlotte Hussey. I emailed your Women's
Lacrosse Program and was so lucky to have gotten ahold of her. UCLA could
not have asked for a better President for Women's Lacrosse! She has been so
gracious and sweet, even inviting our girls to their game against UVA and
giving us a campus tour! Our girls were so excited! They spent the entire time in
awe of the women's lacrosse team and felt so important!
Through Charlotte, we were able to meet Head Coach Larry Turkheimer and
Dayton Gilbreath who then invited our girls as official ball girls for their game
against GCU! One of our girls said the experience was better than Disneyland.
Which brings me to the present. Even though our program is brand new and we
are introducing lacrosse to an area that doesn't know what lacrosse is, Larry
Turkheimer and Dayton Gilbreath have encouraged us to keep going. Their
exemplary kindness and love of what they do has taught us that truly any child
can be a success, regardless of circumstances.
Larry Turkheimer and Dayton Gilbreath have done what has never been done
before in the Antelope Valley, they brought UCLA to our children. On their
own time, each has done personalized clinics for Lancaster School District,
which is the poorest school district in Los Angeles County. Most importantly,
lacrosse was not the only thing they taught our children… but the value of
academics and that everyone has the ability to attend college no matter the
adversity.
On Dayton's day he provided almost all the gear for 120 children at Endeavour
Middle School. Even on such short notice, he encouraged them, made them feel
important & showed them how to play lacrosse. He managed to get all 120 kids
excited for the future and going to college!
On Larry's day, Nyla Hekier and
Mason Hoyt volunteered to accompany him
and represent UCLA's men's and women's team. Again, even on such short
notice, all 3 encouraged and included the children of 2 different elementary
schools, which came to over 300 children. They were met with applause and
adoration! Each single handedly took on groups of children and demonstrated
lacrosse, gave pep talks and made UCLA fans of each grade they handled!
I cannot tell you enough that their presence has reinvigorated the staff at the
local schools and has given everyone something to look forward to. Speaking of
which, the clinics from Dayton, Larry, Mason and Nyla have even inspired each
Principal to contact the Superintendent to include lacrosse in their Physical
Education curriculum!!
In closing, we feel we are the luckiest group of novices to lacrosse there ever
could be. We look forward to the future of lacrosse in the Antelope Valley
because of the help Larry Turkheimer and Dayton Gilbreath have afforded us.
Not to mention your stellar students Charlotte Hussey,
Mason Hoyt and Nyla
Hekier. They all have given our girls a gift not many would, the gift of
knowledge. We hope through knowledge and sports our children will prosper
knowing they are safe, loved and most importantly that they are more than the
situation they may be in. Thank you!
