The H-F wrestling team hosted their fifth annual volunteer service in honor of the values exemplified by Martin Luther King Jr., called “Leaders Are Readers.”
This event was held on Jan. 19, when the North Fieldhouse was filled with curious elementary kids, eager to discover the power of literature and National Honor Society (NHS) members willing to help.
“Leaders Are Readers” is a program that makes sure local kids are able to be read to and inspired by wrestlers, as it is in light of Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Day.
MLK Day is nationally renowned as a day of service; a day to implement the values he stood for, a day for leadership, kindness and volunteering.
Junior Kaci Figures, an NHS volunteer for “Leaders are Readers,” expanded on these sentiments. “I think it’s important for students to volunteer on MLK day to help continue on his dream of making the world a better and more equal place,” Figures said. “That expands more than just fighting to end prejudice within our society, but to fight to help those in need within our communities as well.”
The desire to give back to our community in a new and meaningful way is what first inspired “Leaders Are Readers.”
“I was looking for something unique to do with our wrestlers in regards to community service,” said Head Wrestling Coach Jim Sokoloski. “I started talking to two women who work with the Village of Flossmoor, Stephanie Wright and Maggie Bachus, and we thought that this was something that wasn’t being done already and that we had a need for.”
The community responded to the call to support the local youth, with many families donating books and community members attending the event, including Flossmoor Mayor Michelle Nelson.
“This event is all about giving back to the community,” Sokoloski said. “It is [also] a book drive, so people can donate lightly used books, and we give to people, libraries [or] schools in need.”
This event built strong connections between the wrestlers and children in the community, allowing them to spend time together. “We let kids in the community pick out books, read with them, play games with them, and get to know them personally,” Sokoloski described.
One goal for this event was for the children to see positive role models in athletes. As Sokoloski explained, “I hope that the kids in the community take away that it is cool to read, and even big high school wrestlers do it. I also hope that it gives the community a positive outlook on wrestling to encourage more kids in the community to join wrestling.”
While the event focused on serving the community, it also had a meaningful impact on the athletes.
Sophomore wrestler Xavier Pratt said, “Events like this show a different side of athletes. People usually see us as competitors, but volunteering shows that we care about our community and can be role models off the mat, too.”
These thoughts were similarly expressed by the coach himself. “Service is a huge part of being a student-athlete because we represent our community every time we wear H-F on our chest. I want our athletes to show our community that we are good people, that care about H-F as a whole, on and off the mat,” Sokoloski emphasized.
This program embodies what King stood for as the wrestlers transformed into leaders and the community spreads kindness through literacy. Pratt reminds that this day is “not [about] titles but just showing up and helping out others.”
