What could be better than playing outside with some kids and a pro snowboarder? On Friday, March 2nd Snowboarding prodigy Seth Wescott will be heading to the Hill to visit us for the 10th anniversary sledding party of Colby Cares About Kids (CCAK). The CCAK program was “founded in 2001… [it is] run by the Goldfarb Center for Public Affairs and Engagement. CCAK pairs Colby students (mentors) and local children in grades K-8 (mentees) together to promote academic and social success.” While CCAK “started with an introductory English class going into local schools to work with kids. Today, CCAK has more than 375 Colby mentors paired with area youngsters at 16 sites throughout the Waterville area. Each year, Colby Cares About Kids provides more than 10,000 hours of mentoring to the children of the Greater Waterville Area.”
For any of you that don’t know, the 36-year old two-time Olympic gold medalist in Snowboard cross, has a special connection with the home of the White Mules. Seth’s father (Jim Wescott) coached the very successful Track and Field and Cross Country teams at Colby for a total of 25 years, rewriting 28 of 32 previous records. While his father could be found at our own Alfond Athletic Center, Seth was busy attending school and training at Sugarloaf’s Carrabassett Valley Academy.
Not only has Seth stood on many podiums, but he has also paid homage to his home mountain by opening The Rack, a BBQ restaurant and bar at Sugarloaf named “One of the Best Bars in the Northeastern USA” by Outside Magazine. Seth has also been involved in the Maine charitable organization, WinterKids, with the mission of “helping children develop healthy lifelong habits through fun, outdoor winter activity.” WinterKids affords Maine students from 5th to 7th grade with the opportunity to obtain a “WinterKids Passport” offering them access to hundreds of outdoor recreation centers across the state of Maine.
Whether he’s shredding the mountain or working in the community Wescott seems to always go above and beyond. We’re so excited to have him at Colby and I’m sure it will be amazing for everyone involved.
Sources:
http://web.colby.edu/ccak/
http://www.colby.edu/colby.mag/issues/sum03/fac/
http://espn.go.com/action/athlete/_/id/222/seth-wescott
http://winterkids.org/