California State University Northridge Athletics

BLOG: Student-Athletes Prepare for Costa Rica Service Trip
5/31/2017 10:05:00 AM | Women's Basketball, Women's Water Polo
On Thursday, June 1, 14 CSUN student-athletes will arrive in Costa Rica for a two-week service trip. A diverse group of student-athletes representing different teams and class years will spend 14 days volunteering, learning about Costa Rica's economy, culture and environment and growing their camaraderie as Matadors. Â
During its journey, the group will visit a cloud forest, volunteer with a community water association, spend time at a tropical research station, learn about reforestation and much more. Student-athletes will be blogging about the trip for GoMatadors.com.
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by Caroline Gilling of women's basketball and Paula Abellan Garcia of women's water polo
We have known for a while that we were going to attend the CSUNÂ Athletics service trip to Costa Rica. Now it is finally so close, and we are more excited than words can describe. Getting a physical copy of the itinerary made it so much more realistic.
We are incredibly thankful that we are able to give back as an athletic community. It does not only mean a lot to us but hopefully it can inspire other student-athletes to give back to communities that aren't as fortunate as we are. We know that we will learn so much in Costa Rica that will help our lives as student-athletes. We expect to learn a lot more about leadership and unselfishness and to get another perspective on life, which are all very important assets when it comes to being a student-athlete.
As student-athletes we gain a lot of experiences when traveling and competing for our teams, but being able to go on a trip like this makes the whole student-athlete experience a lot better. We already make so many memories and the fact that we can create even more on this trip is incredible.
One thing we are very excited about too is the fact a bunch of athletes from different teams are going on the trip. We think that this will create a stronger bond not only between the people who are going but also across the teams when we come back. We think it is extremely important to know people from different teams as it will give us a much better perspective and a better experience as student-athletes.
As for now, we do not have any concerns, since we have gotten so much information from Ed Jackiewicz and Ashley Samson, who have helped plan the trip, and feel completely comfortable with everything they have prepared us for. (Actually we are a little scared of all the insects, but hopefully we are bringing enough insect spray.)
Neither of us have been to Central America before, so we are extremely excited to explore a whole new country. It is so fun that we not only get to volunteer and help children and animals, but we also get to explore the country. Seeing pictures of the places where we are going makes us excited and we can't even imagine how beautiful the nature is in real life. This trip is going to be something we will remember for a lifetime and we cannot wait to go.Â
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During its journey, the group will visit a cloud forest, volunteer with a community water association, spend time at a tropical research station, learn about reforestation and much more. Student-athletes will be blogging about the trip for GoMatadors.com.
Â
by Caroline Gilling of women's basketball and Paula Abellan Garcia of women's water polo
We have known for a while that we were going to attend the CSUNÂ Athletics service trip to Costa Rica. Now it is finally so close, and we are more excited than words can describe. Getting a physical copy of the itinerary made it so much more realistic.
We are incredibly thankful that we are able to give back as an athletic community. It does not only mean a lot to us but hopefully it can inspire other student-athletes to give back to communities that aren't as fortunate as we are. We know that we will learn so much in Costa Rica that will help our lives as student-athletes. We expect to learn a lot more about leadership and unselfishness and to get another perspective on life, which are all very important assets when it comes to being a student-athlete.
As student-athletes we gain a lot of experiences when traveling and competing for our teams, but being able to go on a trip like this makes the whole student-athlete experience a lot better. We already make so many memories and the fact that we can create even more on this trip is incredible.
One thing we are very excited about too is the fact a bunch of athletes from different teams are going on the trip. We think that this will create a stronger bond not only between the people who are going but also across the teams when we come back. We think it is extremely important to know people from different teams as it will give us a much better perspective and a better experience as student-athletes.
As for now, we do not have any concerns, since we have gotten so much information from Ed Jackiewicz and Ashley Samson, who have helped plan the trip, and feel completely comfortable with everything they have prepared us for. (Actually we are a little scared of all the insects, but hopefully we are bringing enough insect spray.)
Neither of us have been to Central America before, so we are extremely excited to explore a whole new country. It is so fun that we not only get to volunteer and help children and animals, but we also get to explore the country. Seeing pictures of the places where we are going makes us excited and we can't even imagine how beautiful the nature is in real life. This trip is going to be something we will remember for a lifetime and we cannot wait to go.Â
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