Jan. 25, 2011
The Villanova University Athletics Department along with the Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) will host its Inaugural Table Tennis Tournament benefitting the `each one counts' Foundation. The Villanova student-athletes will take part in an all-day tournament style event on Sunday, January 30, and each will donate $5.00 to the `each one counts' Foundation. Student-athletes will play in pairs, and teams will play amongst themselves; each of Villanova's 24 varsity sports and Cheerleading Team will have one pair winner. The winner of each team will them compete head-to-head in a March madness style tournament. The final round of the tournament will be played on the basketball court in the Pavilion at halftime of the Villanova Men's Basketball vs. Marquette game on Wednesday, February 2nd.
The Villanova Athletics Student-Athlete Advisory Council is one of three participating groups in this inaugural year of the table tennis tournament fundraiser. Fordham University and Fairfield University will both have its student-athletes and Athletics Department participating on their campuses raising money for the `each one counts' Foundation! The `each one counts' Foundation was started by former Villanova Men's Basketball Player Brian Harrington, Class of 1985 and former Men's Basketball Assistant Coach Doug West. The sole purpose of the foundation is to ease the physical pain and suffering of chronically and terminally ill children. The foundation provides funding for complimentary pain management therapies such as massage, hydro, art, music, pet and yoga to name but a few. Regardless of the condition- cystic fibrosis, cancer, neurological disorders, accidents, HIV/AIDS, etc., and because pain is not limited to one disease- the `each one counts" Foundation aim is to ease the debilitating pain of children who are prisoners of a chronic or terminal illness.
Every year, 1,200,000 children need hospice or palliative care; each and every year over 50,000 of these very sick children die. That means that one child will die every ten minutes and less that 1 percent receive the care and pain management they need. ALL proceeds from the Table Tennis Tournament hosted by the Villanova SAAC will go directly into easing the lives of terminally ill children. The `each one counts' Foundation has zero administrative expenses.
As a result of the past Running with the Wildcats 5K Races and this year's newly established Table Tennis Tournament, the determined efforts of the Villanova student-athletes and the support of the Villanova University Community, $45,000 has been donated to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia over the past few years to ease the pain of terminally ill children!
Interested in how you can help the `each one counts' Foundation? Please find more information on their website: http://www.eachonecounts.org/
