MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – This year has been tough for many folks, and UHS multi-sport athlete Avery Dalton wanted to do something to help those in need.
With a plan in mind, he set out before Thanksgiving to put together boxes of donated food to provide a holiday dinner for five local families. The plan went off without a hitch, and each large container of food helped the families make Thanksgiving special as well as had a Walmart gift card included for other needs.
“We wanted to give back to the community and support those families that are less fortunate,” Dalton said.
Dalton has lived in the Morgantown area his whole life, finding his way into athletics in the sixth-grade when his friends convinced him to begin playing football. He now holds a running back and defensive back spot on the Hawks football team. His athletic journey isn’t just limited to that, however, as Dalton recently found his way on to the UHS cheer team as a back spot.
“I started playing football for the Westover Rockets,” he said. “All my friends wanted me to do it, so I decided sixth-grade I’d do it. And with cheer, I started that last year because of my little sister. I was going there in my free time, tumbling, and they kept asking me to be on one of the teams and convinced me.”
Though some may not think it, cheer and football feed off each other for Dalton – the precision and strength he needs on the floor translates into his skill positions on the turf and vice versa.
“Football helps me with cheer because of the upper body strength and it helps me stay physically fit, and cheer helps me with football because it’s a lot more coordinated, it’s taught me to stay on my toes and it’s made me more flexible,” Dalton said.
When it comes to community service, many don’t know how to take the first step. Dalton has clearly become a leader in his own right, something else he’s likely learned from those older than him in football and cheer, and to share some of his wisdom on the matter he noted, “there’s always someone who needs help.”
“You can always do something for somebody, even if it’s not something huge,” he said. “Giving cards to homes for senior citizens, it’s still greatly appreciated and can help people a lot.”
And while he’s changing others’ lives by helping them when in need, it’s also changed his life for the better.
“It makes me feel great,” he said. “I love giving back to the community. Seeing that all this stuff is going towards people who are less fortunate and that I can impact their lives, being a little more fortunate, it’s just great. I love it.”
As for the future, he’s still planning what’s next on his list. But rest assured, there’s a young man who’s looking out for the community and always trying to make it a better place for those who need it the most.
TWEET @andrewspellman_
