A wheelchair basketball game, “SamJam 2011,” will be held at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 8, in the Chiles Center on the University of Portland campus. The game will feature players from a local wheelchair basketball team, the Oregon Disability Sports Blazers, against and a team of UP men’s and women’s basketball players. The game is free, though a $5 donation is recommended.
The charity game is designed to raise money for Sam Bridgman, the team manager for the UP baseball team, according to Sam Westendorf, a senior right fielder for the Pilots. Westendorf is co-president of the University’s Student Athlete Advisory Committee, a group of student athletes that meets twice a month and explores fund-raising opportunities such as the upcoming charity game.
“This is something I thought of last year after learning about what Sam did for the athletic department,” Westendorf said. “This is helping one of our students who is always helping us out.”
Bridgman, a junior business student, was diagnosed with Friedrich’s ataxia at age 15. Friedreich’s ataxia is a genetic, progressive, neuromuscular disease that affects muscle coordination leading to symptoms such as scoliosis, diabetes and life-shortening heart complications.
Bridgman plans to donate the game’s proceeds to the Friedreich’s Ataxia Research Alliance (FARA), a national, public, non-profit, tax-exempt organization dedicated to curing the disease through research.
Fans wishing to make a donation can visit the donation page,
here.
Players expected to participate in the wheelchair basketball game:
UP men’s players:
Kevin Bailey
Eric Waterford
Tanner Riley
Taylor Mossman
Tim Douglas
Derrick Rodgers
Korey Thieleke
Dorian Cason
Ryan Nicholas
Nemanja Mitrovic
UP women’s players:
ReZina TecleMariam
Colleen Olinger
Natalie Day
Amy Pupa
Alexis Byrd
Cassandra Thompson
Erin Boettcher
Kari Luttinen
Jasmine Wooton
Nakeisha Brown
Cassandra Brown
Elyse Snyder.
Oregon Disability Sports Blazers:
Kirk Parkhurst
Nadia Roberts
Tom Dobbeck
Bill Lloyd
Jeff DeLeon
Mike Morin
Ryan Toland
