ETSU Athletics has partnered with Uplifting Athletes in order to shine a light on individuals with rare diseases.

“ETSU is big in helping the community,” said football player Noah Gravel, in reference to his team’s work with the organization.

According to the organization’s website, Uplifting Athletes’ mission is to, “harness the power of sport to build a community that invests in the lives of people impacted by rare diseases.” This non profit organization combines sports and science in order to advocate for those impacted by and fundraise for research surrounding rare diseases. The team behind Uplifting Athletes is made of of athletes, researchers, advocates, patients and allies.

One of the ways this organization instills advocacy efforts is by partnering with division one collegiate sports teams. ETSU serves as an official chapter for Uplifting Athletes. On Friday, April 19, the football team will be hosting a little girl suffering from a rare disease at their spring game. The team has prepared special seats and gifts for her, as Gravel noted that she loves the sport.

“For me, when I heard I could get involved. . . I knew I wanted to make a difference,” said Gravel. “. . . It’s so much bigger than football.”

Uplifting Athletes is committed to supporting research surrounding rare diseases through fundraising efforts as well.

(Contributed/Uplifting Athletes Facebook)

Gravel noted that these fundraising efforts are important because rare diseases are often not researched enough. This is due to the length of time it takes to find cures, and the lack of profitability that would come from such an investment. Gravel stated that it shouldn’t be a decision based on profitability and that, “it’s more about finding a cure to help families in the long run.”

ETSU is participating in the Lift for Life initiative, in which donors can pledge a certain donation for the total weight lifted by a student-athlete or leave a flat donation.

For more information on Uplifting Athletes, visit upliftingathletes.org. To donate through ETSU, visit charity.pledgeit.org/etsufblfl24.