Hosting the third annual Stuff the Stadium event, Augusta University’s basketball team invited students and community members to attend Wednesday night’s game, Jan. 10, at Christenberry Fieldhouse to participate in a stuffed animal tradition.
In an effort to collect stuffed animals for local charities, attendees were encouraged to toss a stuffed animal on the basketball court following the first basket made by AU during their game against Clayton State.
All collected toys will then be donated to several charities within the CSRA including: SafeHomes, the Ronald McDonald House, Copeland Elementary, the Boys and Girls Club, McBean Elementary School and Garden City Rescue Mission.
“We’ve collected over 2,000 stuffed animals the first two years of this event and I love that it continues to grow,” said Dip Metress, Augusta University’s men’s basketball coach. “One of our points of emphasis is to represent Augusta and this is just a small way to give back to the community.”
Inspired by a similar tradition for hockey teams, Metress said he came up with the idea in hopes of raising interest in the university’s athletics.
“Hockey teams used to do it all the time and are known for doing it, and I don’t know many basketball teams that do it … so I said, ‘let’s see if we can pull this off,’” he said. “We’re just trying to get students involved and definitely community members here as well.”
With several student organizations also partnering with the team to make Stuff the Stadium increasingly popular, Metress said he was unsure at first that the event would interest students and collect a significant amount of stuffed toys.
“The first year it worked pretty good,” he said. “We have a lot of fraternities and sororities out here today, so anything to get our students out here for an important cause.”
However, the amount collected each year has only grown with this year’s event resulting in 1,900 stuffed animals – almost double the amount collected over the past two years.
With the court floor quickly being covered in colorful giant teddy bears, unicorns, fluffy lambs, decorated jaguars and more, attendees could be seen smiling from ear-to-ear as each tossed an animal down the bleachers.
As children later receive the toys, Logan Moore, coordinator of student involvement for campus activities from the university’s Student Life and Engagement staff, said she hopes each feels a sense of joy at receiving a new gift.
“I hope they get a sense of joy,” she said. “They might even end up coming to Augusta University, which can make it a full circle moment.”
If the event results in more than 1,000 toys collected, Moore said her department is even able to donate some of the stuffed animals to charities beyond the CSRA, which helps promote the university’s name to hopefully become more widely recognized.
“It’s a good opportunity that it may reach other locations outside the Augusta area, which is really impactful when you think about it,” she said. “A $1 bear can really make a difference in the life of a child in the hospital or in the life of a child living in a safe home somewhere. It can potentially change a child’s life.”
Participating senior student Erin Colley, a sorority member of Augusta University’s Alpha Delta Pi, said she wanted to donate a stuffed animal to especially support children at the nearby Ronald McDonald House.
“Our local philanthropy is the Ronald McDonald House, so we’re fortunate enough to have one actually on our campus,” she said. “It’s really fun to just be with other students for a good cause and all come together, and a lot of these stuffed animals will be donated to our philanthropy, which resonates with a lot of us.”
With many students holding different interests and beliefs, Colley said it is important to have events that unite all in the spirit of giving back to the community.
“To have something that is a common ground that unites everybody, despite our differences, is a beautiful thing,” she said.
Liz Wright is a staff writer covering education, lifestyle and general assignments for The Augusta Press. Reach her at liz@theaugustapress.com
