University of Tennessee Athletics
Vols Carry Beads Of Courage This Saturday
November 21, 2014 | Football
TUCSON, Ariz. -- On Saturday, November 22, members of the University of Tennessee football team and spirit squad will have colorful beads pinned to their uniforms to honor children coping with serious illness. Following the game, the beads will be returned to Beads of Courage, Inc., a nonprofit organization that provides arts-in-medicine programs for children with life-threatening illnesses.
Through the Beads of Courage "Carry A Bead" initiative, the UT beads will be given to children being treated for cancer and other illnesses in recognition of their courage and fortitude. The beads will be presented to children as their first Act of Courage bead during the launch of the Beads of Courage Program at East Tennessee Children's Hospital in January 2015.
A total of 200 team members will carry handmade lampwork glass Power T beads made by artist Diana Rast, as UT takes on Missouri in the last home game of the season. Beads will be worn by players on their lapel during the Vol walk, and tied inside their pads during the game. The Spirit Squad, including Smokey, will have beads pinned to their uniforms throughout the game. This is the second consecutive year that UT athletes have participated in a Carry A Bead experience.
"Our Carry A Bead program provides a way to honor and acknowledge the incredible courage that children facing serious illness demonstrate every day," said Beads of Courage executive director Jean Baruch. "We are thrilled to partner with the student athletes at the University of Tennessee as they battle it out on the football field, just as the children we serve battle illness every day with a never-give-up attitude."
The public is encouraged to take part in the Carry A Bead program by obtaining a Carry A Bead kit on the Beads of Courage website ( www.beadsofcourage.org) for a $20 donation. The beads may be worn for any event, big or small. Carry A Bead participants return one bead to Beads of Courage and keep one handmade glass bead from each kit they receive.
Two children who had beads carried in their honor last year will be present on game day this year, along with two new Beads of Courage Members, representing the 30,000 children served by Beads of Courage, according to Ashley Ethridge, Regional Director for Beads of Courage and a University of Tennessee graduate.
Antone Davis, Director of the Vol for Life Program, who helped coordinate the Carry A Bead experience at UT, said, "Vol for Life focuses on the personal growth and development of student athletes. Carrying a Bead for a child coping with a serious illness allows the players to demonstrate compassion in a tangible way, while teaching them the positive impact they can have in their community."
The UT Carry A Bead experience was made possible through the generous support of Jewelry Television, a partner in caring with Beads of Courage and proud supporter of the Tennessee Volunteers. Jewelry Television is headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee.
About Beads of Courage: The mission of Beads of Courage (BOC) is to provide innovative arts-in-medicine programs for children coping with cancer and other serious illness, their families, and healthcare providers who care for them. BOC programs are evidence-based interventions designed to strengthen resilience, alleviate suffering, and improve the psychosocial adjustment process. Beads of Courage currently serves 260 member hospitals in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Japan and New Zealand. BOC is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. For more information or to make a donation, visit www.beadsofcourage.org.
