Paterno: Upcoming Impact Award Honorees Represent ‘the Very Best of Penn State’

Penn State is the nation’s leading service-oriented university, a school where philanthropy and helping others is part of our DNA. That commitment is university-wide, including a long history of service to others by student-athletes, both current and alumni.

A few years ago, we started The Impact Awards to recognize former Penn State football student-athletes that had gone on to a life of service to others. The three previous winners of the Impact Awards are Michael Robinson, Aaron Maybin and Bill Spoor. All of them had amazing stories to tell. You can see more about them at PennStatersMakeAnImpact.com

The idea behind these awards really started with a conversation that I’d had years ago with my parents, Sue and Joe Paterno. I’d asked what they would do in their retirement years, and they informed me of a unique vision. They wanted to “adopt” some elementary school classes in an inner-city school system in Philadelphia. They’d pay for and accompany them on field trips to museums, musical performances and educational experiences. They’d organize and fundraise to help these kids pursue and attain elevated educational goals for their lives. The goal was to lift the students’ visions to see horizons beyond what they thought, and what society told them, was possible.

It was a noble vision, one cut short by cancer that took my father just two months into his life after football.

My mother has certainly carried forth their vision for service. She continues to work tirelessly for Pennsylvania Special Olympics, for Penn State Ability Athletics athletes and other causes. 

But there was a recognition that my parents’ vision need not fade with my father’s passing. There was an idea that the seeds we sow in our mortal lives can grow and spread in those who remain.

To recognize others carrying on the vision of service to others, we created The Make an Impact Fund which was endowed by a generous gift from an anonymous donor. The endowment provides grants to the foundations our winners have created to help them continue to impact the world around them.

This year, four Impact Award Winners and one Land-Grant Impact Award winner reflect a vision of service across several fields.

The Impact Awards will be held at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, at The State Theatre. The event is free and open to the public. No tickets are needed. Each winner will share their story and then be part of a panel with questions being asked by current Penn State student-athletes and the audience.

Along that theme, the Impact Awards will be hosted by two current Penn State student-athletes: Caroline Jurevicius from women’s volleyball and Cooper Cousins from football. 

The goal is for the current student-athletes and the public to witness the power of service and to be inspired to do the same. This year, we wanted to broaden the award winners to reflect student-athletes from a number of sports.

Deryck Toles came to play football at Penn State from Warren, Ohio. When his playing days were over, he returned and began a program mentoring students that started sitting around a table at a McDonald’s. That program, Inspiring Minds, now boasts chapters in several states and serves over 1,000 students each year.

Penn State women’s volleyball alums Samantha Ream Haas and Kelsey Napolitan have impacted people and families fighting cancer. Kelsey’s brother Brandon Ream was a former Penn State football player and was married to Sam when he was diagnosed with cancer. He lived life to the fullest before his life was cut short. But they took up the cause establishing the Team Ream Foundation to help families facing the challenge of a cancer fight. 

Dylan Lugris is a Buffalo, New York, native and former Penn State ice hockey player. While at Penn State he became interested in the local sled hockey team. Sled hockey is an adaptive sport that requires expensive sleds and equipment. It is a great outlet lifting the spirits of people who could not otherwise play the game. Dylan organized an annual event featuring a sled hockey game with the sled hockey team playing the Penn State hockey team. The student section, the band and fans come to root against Penn State and it raises money for the sled hockey program. The event and the program have grown and benefitted from Dylan’s leadership.

These four former student-athletes have engaged in causes that were close to the hearts of Sue and Joe Paterno. Both also believed in the unique land-grant mission that is the heart of Penn State’s founding.

This year we’re awarding the Land Grant Impact Award to Dr. Michael McShane from Penn State Health. He and medical students at Penn State have created the Lion Mobile Health Clinic. Penn State doctors and medical students travel to underserved and rural parts of Pennsylvania to provide free services and screenings for people that might otherwise not get medical care. It is an incredible link between Penn State and the people of the commonwealth. 

These five award winners represent the very best of our society, the very best of Penn State. When we chant “WE ARE” and when we sing the last line of our Alma Mater “May our lives but swell thy fame, dear old State, dear old State” this is exactly what defines our university.

In an era where many look to create division, next Wednesday night at The State Theatre bear witness to the good that we as Penn Staters have done and will continue to do for the world. I guarantee you will leave the event with a special feeling for what we can be as a society.