Sooners Encourage Safety

Feb. 11, 2008

NORMAN, Okla. - Freshmen Ana-Maria Constantinescu and Maria Kalashnikova, of the Sooner women's team, partnered with a group of OU senior public relations majors Friday, Feb. 8 to help increase awareness about child automobile safety.

The Sooner duo visited the Oklahoma City Boys and Girls Memorial Park Club, talking with two groups of students; one ages 7-10, followed by a session with students 10-14.

"It was such a great experience for me," Constantinescu said. "I love being able to go out into the community and use tennis to benefit others. Being able to interact with the kids was really very special. It is great to know that even if we helped just one student buckle up, we made a difference."

The OU seniors, whose campaign is titled "Safety in the Heartland," are part of a team competing in the PRSA National Bateman competition.

"This has been a great project for us," team leader Cassi Doolittle said. "We have worked really hard since August doing research and planning these events, so to see the kids really enjoying themselves and learning something makes it feel as though all the hard work has paid off. It has also been so great working with the athletes, it really adds to our campaign having them along, and the kids love them."

The students, along with the help of the tennis teams, will be visiting numerous after-school organizations and youth groups, in Oklahoma City and Norman throughout the month of February. The program put on at each organization begins with an informational session containing facts about the importance of seatbelts. The students then participate in a series of games, where it is seen who was listening and who wasn't.

"When you participate in a program like this with kids this age, you wonder how well they are actually listening," Constantinescu said. "The game was great and it was so rewarding to know that they were listening to what we said and soaked at least some of it in."

Men's tennis players Ryan Thomas and Federico Chavarria will join students Friday, Feb. 15 at Harvest Hills Elementary School in Oklahoma City.

Numerous athletes from the men's and women's tennis teams will continue to make appearances throughout the month of February in an effort to better the community and in support of "Safety in the Heartland."

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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