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The football program has chosen to continue the Ethiopia experience whereby they the university take a contingency of UK representatives to the country of Ethiopia and conduct a help mission as well as seeing how the other half live. It has been an eye opening experience for the football player along with athletic director Mitch Barnhart, who has accompanied past junkets.
Football players chosen to go this time were Avery Williamson, Kevin Mitchell, and Jonathan George. These are all seniors to be for the upcoming season.
Mark Stoops had said prior to spring practice that he was looking for leaders for this team. At the end of spring practice of the four mentioned Williamson was one of them mentioned. This trip can do nothing but further enhance his leadership skills. The other three mentioned were Raymond Sanders, Alvin ”Bud” DuPree, and Jalen Whitlow.
Williamson was asked what he and the team had been doing since spring practice ended? He said he had been getting in some extra work to get ahead of a lot of other teams. As for as his trip to Africa, he said – “I was really shocked when I first got there. The first day when I got there I was really homesick but when I got settled in I was really humbled to get the opportunity. It makes you appreciate what you have here and to have what most all of them don’t have.” He said had history not played out as it did he could be one of those little kids begging for their very existence.
“I was so grateful to get the opportunity,” offensive lineman Kevin Mitchell said. “But humbling to see kids come up to begging and to give them just a piece of candy was rewarding. He said like Avery (Williamson) he gave the drivers UK gear and there are a lot of UK football fans there now. Many of the people were the same people former players interacted with before but for the most part when you say football to them they think soccer balls.
Jonathan George said his parents were jealous of him because he got to go back to what they referred to as “The Mother Land.” “It was an experience to see some of the things that you see on TV and some of the things that you don’t see on TV,” the senior running back said. “One of the things he took from this trip was being thankful of the things I do have. I’ve always been thankful for the things I have because there’s always somebody that is worse off than you but I think this opened up my eyes even more.” Is there any one moment that you will never really forget? He said – “We visited a leprosy community and there was an older man who didn’t have any legs and he walked around with flip-flops on his hands. We were bagging up food and charcoal and he started helping us with his hands not just for himself but others. He had a bike that he pedaled with his hands and that’s how he got around.”
University employee Jason Schlafer coordinated the trip, which was his third time coordinating the trip for the football team. In total this was his sixth trip to Ethiopia. He said that on this trip it was just him and the players. Mitch Barnhart and Mark Stoops were not along. Coach Stoops’ children had just moved here. Schlafer said he has a child that is Ethiopian so he went over there to pick him up. The flight is seventeen hours.
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