Oakland’s student athletes participate in many community service events throughout the year. This year’s new event has been described by many of the student-athletes as the best event by far. 

Trick or Suite is an event put on by Embassy Suites Hotel in Troy. For six years, the hotel has partnered with Children’s Leukemia Foundation of Michigan to give kids with leukemia, lymphoma and other blood-related disorders a chance to trick or treat.

Due to their low immune systems, patients of these disorders are not always able to “trick or treat” outdoors from house to house. The Trick or Suite event gives these children a way to celebrate Halloween.

A variety of different organizations throughout the community are given a suite in the hotel to decorate in any way that they want. This year, Oakland University Athletics signed up for a room. An organization within the athletes entitled SAAC, Student Athlete Advisory Committee, began planning for the event in their first meeting of the year.

Sara Cupp, a SAAC representative of the Oakland softball team, immediately took charge of the event.

“The softball team decided to head the event because we all had a big interest in it, but there was so much help from the other teams as well at the event,” Cupp said.

The student athletes decorated their suite as a haunted bear den. Credit goes to Lyndsay Hill of the softball team for the idea. Many of the athletes helped with the set up of the room while others dressed in costume and handed out candy to the kids. The teams that had games occurring during the event did their part by donating candy and decorations. 

“I think that the event was very successful. I think that the best part was seeing all of the kids’ smiles as they walked through all of the different rooms,” Cupp said. “I think that all of the athletes were just so happy that they could help these kids have fun while they are battling for their lives.”

SAAC puts together a variety of different community service events for student athletes to take part in throughout the year. The students consider giving back to the community a very important duty of theirs. Taylor Humm, SAAC president and captain of the volleyball team, weighed in.

“When we as a athletic department can lend a helping hand in the community, it is a great feeling to be a part of,” Humm said. “The impact it has on us is so different than going to the classroom or participating in collegiate athletics. It humbles you and shapes who you are in a very different way.”