By Kelsey Roger, Editor-in-chief
The Susquehanna women’s volleyball team welcomed a new member to their team on Oct. 9 as they adopted 8-year-old Bromwyn Keener through the Friends of Jaclyn organization.
Friends of Jaclyn is a non-profit organization that seeks to improve the quality of life for children battling cancer by pairing them with local teams and organizations.
The volleyball team initially placed interest in partnering three years ago when the Susquehanna women’s softball team adopted a child to their team, according to head volleyball coach Kuuipo Tom.
“I saw what he [softball head coach Brad Posner] did with that and I said, ‘You gotta get me involved with this. Some- how, some way,’” Tom said. “We’ve been on the list waiting for someone for three years.”
Tom said that the opportunity to adopt Keener came up last week and that they jumped at the opportunity as soon as it came up, since Oct. 9 was the team’s last home match until Oct. 30.
Tom said that when he was Keener’s age he was burnt in a tragic accident and spent the majority of his young life by himself, where he stayed in the hospital and had over 100 surgeries.
“Having that memory and understanding that we could get involved with someone that age and give them a family and friendship…this was an opportunity to get grassroots involved, help her get through this and be a good support system for her and her family,” Tom continued.
Keener will be invited to every match for the women’s volleyball team, where she has her own uniform. Tom said that they are trying to make plans for Keener to at- tend some of the team’s away matches in the near future.
“I think there’s gonna be a lot of interaction with her out- side of volleyball,” Tom said. “To find times to take her and go do something with her and stay engaged with her and just try to make her life really happy and fun.”
“For us, it also keeps things in perspective,” junior right- side hitter Sydney Portale said. “When we have Bromwyn on the bench we have to keep in mind what she’s going through right now is so much harder than anything we go through on the court. She’s a very calming presence and we just wanna be there for her.”