A Grey Cup champion, Ryan Sceviour, is going to be in Airdrie on February 1 to read to students at Coopers Crossing as part of the World Read Aloud Day.

Director of Communications Jean Lefebvre with the Calgary Stampeders says that taking part in events like this are important to the team.

"That goes on right through the off-season and obviously, having won the Grey Cup, the guys are especially anxious to get out there and meet with fans and hear all their great stories about being able to share this victory."

"Whenever the players do community events, they always feel connected with their fan base. They're just guys, they love being out there and interacting so when we have all these events where we get the chance for players and coaches to interact with the fans. Everybody just has a blast."

Lefebvre describes just what Sceviour is going to be doing in Airdrie.

"(It's) part of a world program basically that promotes literacy called World Read Aloud Day. So Ryan Sceviour who is a Calgary guy, who went to the University of Calgary and was a rookie for us this past season is going to be going to Coopers Crossing School in Airdrie and will be reading books for the kids."

As well as the World Read Aloud Day, Lefebvre says the Stampeders will be participating in other events in February.

"Recently we had our CUPS Christmas in January which is an annual event for CUPS here in Calgary which helps the less fortunate people in our community and they were serving what they call Christmas in January, so a late Christmas dinner for a bunch of people. That's always a highlight on the schedule for the guys and a lot of fun kind of extending the Christmas season a little bit. Charlie Power is our spokesperson for the Canadian Blood Services so promoting blood donations and he'll be involved with that. We have a couple guys who will be playing at the Flames Charity Poker Tournament, so the guys continue to be involved."

"A really cool thing we're doing in February is that we're not going out into the community, the community is coming to us. We will be hosting all the amateur football teams in the Calgary area and they're going to come to the visitor locker room and get a chance to spend some time with the Grey Cup and get photos taken and meet some players."

Lefebvre gives the credit of the connection between the Calgary Stampeders and Airdrie to defensive line coach Corey Mace.

"Airdrie obviously has its own community but it really is in a lot of ways another extension of Calgary. Corey Mace, our defensive line coach who's a former player, has really helped strengthen the bond between Airdrie and Calgary. He does an annual turkey drive where fans donate turkeys and hams for distribution to less-fortunate families and he's connected with the Airdrie Food Bank and he goes up there with just truckloads of turkeys so they have a really great relationship and I think that's really been the catalyst for us to be involved in that community."

 

Comments? Questions? Story ideas? Email us at news@discoverairdrie.com