Ambassadors of Compassion is a program that has been available to athletes for a few years now. Every year, different sports are able to sign up to get their athletes involved. According to ambassadorsofcompassion.com, their mission is to “provide a safe space for students to address their real-life issues in a positive way. Fostering self-awareness, purpose, connection, and hope that effectively minimizes the emotional obstacles that deter a healthy, productive life.” This season, swim, track and field, softball, tennis, wrestling, and football are taking part.
In the sessions, athletes go into groups and complete activities, centered around a new topic every week. They are grouped with their peers, one of which being a student leader chosen by the coaches. Group leaders are in charge of leading the sessions and getting their groups to complete the exercises in their workbooks. Senior Karla Merino, who is a group leader, explains her role in the program.
“My role as an AOC leader is to make sure my group feels comfortable and safe sharing their thoughts and emotions while guiding them through the AOC program and helping them become ambassadors of compassion,” says Merino.
This year, the program is slightly different because it is a SAC course rather than a voluntary community service program. Students had to sign up with SAC and create a student portal in order to be involved this year. Junior Kayla Lopez explains how creating a SAC portal was a new experience for her.
“Setting up the SAC account for AOC was a new experience for me, but the process was pretty straightforward. It seemed a little complicated at first, but once I went through the steps, it wasn’t too difficult,” explains Lopez.
Overall, athletes are interested in seeing what the program has to offer and how it will differ from past years. Although many people have trouble being vulnerable with each other, this program helps them open up. In turn, they will trust each other more and be a united front during their seasons.
