Christmas for the Community

EUGENE, Ore. – The Bushnell athletic department has recently engaged in a few opportunities to support the local community during the holiday season.

Each year, Bushnell athletic teams participate in an adopt-a-family program, pooling their efforts to provide gifts for children in need. This year, Bushnell was able to give a little Christmas spirit to 15 kids ranging from 11 months to 17 years old.

“I am so proud of our student-athletes for living out our tri-athlete model and embracing our community,” said Associate Athletic Director Sarah Freeman. Our student-athletes are true Beacons through the donation of their time and resources to bless families in need this holiday season. It truly warms my heart to see our students, many with limited resources themselves, joyfully give. Our goal is to bless others through this process, but our student-athletes are also impacted and blessed through their giving.”

Another annual tradition for the Beacons is our very own athletic director Corey Anderson, giving a hand to Santa Claus. Originally started during the pandemic as a way to bring some joy to children who didn’t have an opportunity to visit the big man in-person, Zoom with Santa was launched by the Eugene Family YMCA.

“What’s super fun is kids – because I’m on Zoom – they will bring me to show me the tree or they’ll bring toys to the screen,” said Santa. “I enjoy the Zoom way more because there is so much more depth to it compared to 50 kids waiting in line to take a picture.”

That endeavor continued this year along with expand into some additional in-person opportunities, including the River Road Parks and Recreation District and a two-day stint working with Toys for Tots in Springfield. In all, he has spent over 40 hours brightening the lives of children in the Eugene/Springfield area this season. His work was also recently featured in the Register-Guard.