General | December 13, 2023

AIKEN, S.C. – Over a two-week span, student-athletes from four teams from the University of South Carolina Aiken assisted South Aiken Presbyterian Church with their Secret Santa project.

With nearly 400 youth in need in Aiken County, the entire softball team as well as student-athletes from women's soccer, volleyball and the Spirit Squad combined to spend over 100 hours wrapping presents Dec. 2 and Dec. 9. In addition to wrapping presents, the student-athletes also cataloged each item for every family.

"We have done a community service event like this for the past three years and it's always been my favorite," softball standout Mallory Shaver said. "It's amazing getting to see how many families that we are able to help during the holiday season every year. I loved meeting and interacting with some members of the Aiken community. They truly made this event special. We always enjoy being able to give back to the community whenever we can since they are always supporting us."

"It was a really fun experience," women's soccer standout Shiloh Pirro stated. "All the members of the church who were working with us were super welcoming and very patient when explaining everything to us. It was really great to see so many people and student-athletes come together to give back to the community."

"It was such a joy to be able to welcome USC Aiken student-athletes as volunteers for Secret Santa," SAPC communications specialist Carina McGee said. "There is so much to do in our program each year, and we could not have accomplished everything this year without their generous support. We're looking forward to being able to work with them again in the future!"