At Steer For Student Athletes’ Annual Holiday Dinner last month, over 100 guests were on hand to support the not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing funding and services to at-risk student athletes. Steer Coordinator Byron Womack and Co-Chair Mike Eck welcomed supporters at the event, held at the Hilton Westchester in Rye Brook.

At Steer For Student Athletes’ Annual Holiday Dinner last month, over 100 guests were on hand to support the not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing funding and services to at-risk student athletes. Steer Coordinator Byron Womack and Co-Chair Mike Eck welcomed supporters at the event, held at the Hilton Westchester in Rye Brook.

Keynote speaker Lloyd Campbell, who is currently a consultant for the global executive search firm Spencer Stuart, focused on overcoming obstacles and the ability to sacrifice what it takes to achieve desired goals. His uncle, Harry A. Sheppard, served in World War II as a member of the Tuskegee Airmen, the first African-American military aviators in the United States Armed Forces. He shared a video detailing the group’s impressive record despite facing frequent and threatening resistance to their presence in the formerly all-white Army Air Corps.  

Campbell emphasized the importance of giving back. “It is not about what you are, but who you are,” he said. He challenged this generation of Steer students to pay it forward and mentor the next generation.

Steer For Student Athletes is in its third school year of operation. There are 21 students in the program, ranging from grades 8-12, and the organization currently operates in three schools and school districts: Port Chester High School (Port Chester-Rye Union Free School District), Palisade Preparatory School (Yonkers Public School District), and Urban Assembly School for Careers in Sports (New York City Public School District).

Steer has recently launched a fundraising campaign with the goal to have 100 student athletes in the program by 2020. Visit SteerForStudentAth-letes.org.