@CanesRowing Cleans Biscayne National Park
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami rowing team is set to embark on another competitive spring season, but the Hurricanes recently took some time off from their training to give back to their local community.
The Canes spent the morning of March 8 helping to clean parts of Biscayne National Park(BNP), teaming with Kelsy Armstrong, Alternative Spring Break Coordinator at BNP, and Suzy and George Pappas of the non-profit group Coastal Cleanup Corporation.
“We were able to pick up trash on a canal in Biscayne National Park,” Miami head coach Dave Sanderson said. “It had been cleaned up previously about two months ago and we collected 400 pounds of trash. That shows you the impact that humans have on the environment, an environment that we rely heavily on because we are outside, on the water every day.”
Miami’s rowers, coxswains and coaching staff banded together in conjunction with BNP and Coastal Cleanup to make a difference in an area that needed attention. Freshman marine science major Emily Storrs was thrilled to be able to help the South Florida ecosystem.
“It was so sad to see the condition that beach was in after just two months since they last cleaned it in January,” Storrs said. “It was so rewarding to pick it all up and the amount we found was incredible. I think we all had a good feeling to know we were helping.”
Sanderson was pleased with the result of the day’s beach cleanup, noting that both Biscayne National Park and the Hurricanes benefitted from Sunday’s service project.
“There are two benefits,” Sanderson said. “The first is getting the team together and working together in an arena outside of rowing. They are doing something together that doesn’t have anything directly to do with the rowing and training they usually focus on. It’s a good opportunity to be in a different situation because it’s a change in their routines. It’s great to get off campus and in a different environment.”
“The second benefit of course is helping in the community we live in,” Sanderson said. “We are fortunate to be in South Florida and surrounded by national parks and a ton of water. We have Biscayne National Park to the south and east and Everglades National Park to the south and west and this major metropolitan area in the middle that has a significant impact on those environments.”
Senior Meghan Hamilton is a South Florida native and she was happy to join her teammates in giving back to her community.
“It was great to come together as a team and help clean the beach on Sunday,” Hamilton said. “We are lucky to live in such a beautiful area and I know we were happy to help maintain that beauty.”
Storrs agrees with her fellow coxswain and believes activities like Sunday’s beach cleanup can only help the Hurricanes as they prepare for the 2015 season.
“It definitely brings us closer,” Storrs said. “We are close already from all the time we spend together on the water, but doing something in the community and helping each other outside of our normal routine only helps us strengthen as teammates. It was great for us and great to be able to help out in an area that needed it.”
Sanderson was proud of the impact the Canes made on Sunday and hopes to continue to help in the future.
“We row on North Biscayne Bay but all this water is connected,” Sanderson said. “I think it’s important to understand that we are part of who is responsible for taking care of it. I think doing a beach cleanup at Biscayne National Park is a good step in that direction. I think everyone involved saw that they had an immediate and significant positive impact in just a few hours. We are all looking forward to doing it again in the future.”
