Jay Urich, South Carolina Gamecocks give back to community
Former South Carolina football player Jay Urich is giving back to the community with the help of some fellow Gamecocks.
Urich is the the founder of Original Design, a non-profit organization with the goal of providing more opportunities for kids and teenagers. On Saturday, dozens of children ranging from ages eight through 12 took part in one of the program’s camps. This marks the second straight year one was held at Heathwood Hall.
“We’re just in Columbia and we’re not trying to go too wide right now. We really want to sink deep. From the beginning that was something very important to me. Instead of expanding to 100 kids to impact we’ve sunk deep with about 25 a year,” said Urich. “We want to go deep and not wide and make a deep impact on these kids through the whole year long program with a 1-on-1 mentor.”
Joining Urich were a handful of current and former South Carolina Gamecocks including Laeticia Amihere from the women’s basketball team.
“It’s so important. For me and my own story I’m here because somebody was able to be a mentor to me,” said Amihere. “If I can bring that back into the community – coach (Dawn Staley) says it all the time – she owes a debut to basketball and think that’s the same for me.”
Urich shared on their foundation’s website where the name “Original Design” comes from.
“Everyone has an original design — whether you’re a 50-year-old donor or a child attending camp for the very first time. Our original design as children of God is to have an intimate relationship with Him and to work together to help the world around us thrive. God loves us and values us so much He sacrificed Himself for us. When we know God intimately, we begin to see the value that is placed on our lives. We want to impart the revelation of our original design to children everywhere!”
To learn more about Original Design, visit their website.
