2024 Knights Give Back: Students and Alumni Come Together for Good
From across the country and close to home, Knight Nation recently came together for a cause that drew attention to the awesome giving nature of our students and alumni.
Through Volunteer UCF, a student-led agency at the University of Central Florida that is dedicated to promoting civic engagement through service projects, students came together for a variety of activities on Knights Give Back, Saturday, Oct. 5.
Our community-minded students do way more than just set aside one day to give back, however.
Some of the many activities in which the VUCF students have also been involved this year include a card-writing drive for hospitalized children; the UNCF Run/Walk for Education; an adopt-a-road cleanup; a collaboration with VoteRiders, a nonpartisan effort to ensure individuals exercise their constitutional right to vote; and the opportunity to assist at a Special Olympics gymnastics competition for individuals with disabilities.
For Knights Give Back, Volunteer UCF students had a “menu” of choices from which to select their volunteer adventure: The Sharing Center, a Seminole County homeless drop-in resource center; Mustard Seed, a service organization benefiting individuals who have been torn apart by personal tragedy, natural disaster, and financial hardship; Heart of Florida United Way, who empower individuals by focusing on investing in four key areas – basic needs, financial stability, education and health; Home of Bright Choices, serving individuals age 17 to adult with cognitive disabilities; and the UCF Office of Military and Veteran Student Success, creating an enriching and inclusive environment for military-connected students to achieve educational and career goals through academic and community partnerships.
Students who participated in Knights Give Back activities included the entire board of this year’s Volunteer UCF:
Sara Alvarez, Tylia Brown, Vanessa Canizares, Jessica Doyle, Santiago Verzeri Grinshpun, Mackenzie Labruyere, Jeanna Lee, Sophie Lee, Camryn Licata, Diana Louis, Srimedha Medicherla, Meriam Naguib, Sthefani Paitan, Ashley Parasram, Sylvanna Petrozzino, Bianca Pinilla, Sanii Porter, Rose Rodríguez, Ann Mary Thomas, Hennys Torrealba, Ryan Trevino, Hannah Wagner, Michael Watson, and Emily Williams.
“Every single day, I am reminded of the power of Knight Nation,” says Heather Junod ’98, associate vice president for alumni engagement and annual giving. “I appreciate our busy students leading the charge for giving back to their community, and I am also grateful for our AlumKnights across the country who sought out critical needs in their own communities and made an impact locally.”
Students from Volunteer UCF were joined on Oct. 5 with UCF alumni from across the country.
UCF Communities are the perfect way to stay connected with your alma mater – and with other Knights wherever you are. There are never any fees or requirements to join a community, and just some of the benefits include access to a variety of events including UCF Watch Parties; networking with alums, business and community leaders; impacting your community through service and philanthropy and much more.
Raina Mack, chair of the UCF Atlanta Community, spearheaded its Knights Give Back day. Her members chose the cleanup of the Atlanta Beltline, a major community space that brings people together for recreation and transportation. Because of its inherent nature, the location often accumulates litter and debris.
“By focusing on this area,” Mack says, “We aimed to make a positive environmental impact while engaging our UCF alumni in a project that benefits the broader Atlanta community.”
The Knights of the Atlanta Community divided and conquered the enormous amount of manual labor involved in the project. Their goal, Mack says, was to ensure the area was more pleasant for the community to enjoy.
Using provided safety equipment and tools, the Knights set to work and concentrated on the areas with the most foot traffic and near green spaces to maximize their impact.
Mack says the feedback she received from the day of giving back was “overwhelmingly positive.”
“Some of our Knights were surprised by the amount of trash that had accumulated and expressed a desire to make these types of cleanups a regular event,” Mack says. “Our Knights were so proud to give back both to the Atlanta community and to UCF while building connections with other alumni.”
Mack also says that there are many ways for Knights to connect with each other that do not involve watch parties and invited all Knights in the Atlanta area to reach out to her if they’d like to become more involved with UCF.
After their cleanup, the Atlanta Community Knights hosted a happy hour at Taqueria Tsunami owned by alumna Alexis Kinsey, who operates 17 restaurant locations in Georgia.
Shout out to the Atlanta Community Knights who participated in the Atlanta Beltway cleanup (and to other Knights who participated in offsite charitable projects): Robert Boyd, Tracy Clayton, Brittany Des Vignes, Marquis Greene, Anita Hogans, Andreina Icaza, Paula Llano, Raina Mack, Orlando Montalvo, Adam Saxon, Damion Tomlinson, Samantha Truong, Kesha Wright, and Terrance Wright.
More than 100 AlumKnights across the country participated in 2024 Knights Give Back. We are so grateful to the following communities and to our tireless Knights who came together for a great cause:
Broward County Knights: Chair, Mara Gordon ’10 – beach cleanup at Hugh Taylor Birch State Park in Fort Lauderdale
Chicago Knights: Chair, Matt Morin ’11– a two-hour shift at Cradles to Crayons in Chicago Giving Factory
Houston Knights: Chair, Chris Wetmore ’06 – volunteer at the Houston Foodbank
Jacksonville Knights: Chair, Erin Johnston ’08 – McCoy Creek Cleanup in Jacksonville
Lake County Knights: Chair, Erin Pendergast ’09 – Youth Mental Health First Aid Certification
New York Knights: Chair, Jess Rooney ’09 – Park cleanup at El Jardin del Paraiso in NYC
Palm Beach Knights: Chair, Angela Byrd ’07 – Beach cleanup at Ocean Reef Park in Riviera Beach
Space Coast Knights: Chair, Rob Iezzi ’07 – farm cleanup at nonprofit Harmony Farms
Tampa Bay Knights: Chair, Jose Garcia ’16 – beach cleanup at Ben T Davis beach in Tampa
Washington DC Knights: Chair: Brandon Nightingale ’16 – volunteering at Latinas Leading Tomorrow’s 3rd annual Reach for the Stars 5K
