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Quote:DeKalb, Ill. - For the student-athletes and staff of Northern Illinois Athletics, giving of their time and effort to help those in need while serving as role models in the community is an important part of their experience as Huskies.

Huskie student-athletes regularly participate in community service activities at hospitals, schools and fundraisers throughout the DeKalb and Sycamore areas. During the past semester, NIU student-athletes and staff took part in three worthy efforts: Bowl for Kids Sake, NIU Cares Day and the MAC Penny Bowl.

For the second year in a row NIU Athletics raised over $11,000 in the "Bowl for Kids Sake" effort which benefited the Family Service Agency's Big Brothers and Big Sisters program. The Bowl for Kids Sake fundraiser supplies 80 percent of the program's annual budget. As part of the program, NIU teams garnered pledges and then spent an hour bowling at a local alley. Once again, NIU Football led the way as team members raised $4,600, and the MAC Champion men's soccer team finished second among 13 Northern Illinois groups by raising over $1,600. Four other Huskie Athletics teams or organizations raised $800 or more as the Huskie Interns (student-athletes who have exhausted eligibility but remain on campus to finish their degrees), checked in with $981, the women's basketball team raised $870, women's soccer came in at $820 and women's track and field and cross country contributed $800.

NIU Cares day is a campus wide event where NIU students participate in community service along with other members of the Northern Illinois community, servicing the NIU Campus as well as the DeKalb area. Huskie athletes from men's soccer, women's basketball, cheerleading and gymnastics assisted with NIU's "Beautification Process" by cleaning up Watson Creek and the area around Greek Row.

In the first annual MAC Penny Bowl, Northern Illinois raised a total of $1,007 with the Huskies' Student-Athlete Advisory Committee taking on the challenge. The MAC Penny Bowl was a competition between all 12 schools in the Mid-American Conference to see who could raise the most money for charity. Huskie student-athletes collected change at the NIU Football Spring Game and from offices throughout campus. The school that raised the most got the opportunity to choose the charity that will receive half of the proceeds raised across the league.

Overall, Northern Illinois earned over $1,000 in donations and finished second in the competition. The Huskies were barely edged out of first by Bowling Green, who raised $1,180. NIU will donate half of that amount, which each campus was allowed to keep, to the NIU Relay for Life which benefits the American Cancer Society.

"We have a goal of providing a `world class' experience for our student-athletes and one of the ways to do that is to teach the importance and responsibility of giving back," said Associate Athletics Director CHAMPS/Life Skills Monique Bernoudy, "These opportunities to work and serve others are important because it allows student-athletes to make a difference in the lives of others."

MAC Penny Bowl Final Standings

BGSU: $1,180

NIU: $1,007

EIU: $461

OH: $317

BSU: $200

Kent: $100