HENDERSON, Nev. – The Las Vegas Raiders this week conducted a "Stretch and Move" activity at Red Rock Elementary School in Las Vegas in an effort to empower the next generation of youth to be the most physically active and healthy. The Raiders led students through various stretch, warmup and cool down routines, football drills and games they can replicate at recess and home while also promoting the Play 60 message of being active for 60 minutes every day. The students circulated through stations to participate in activities including a quarterback throwing station, baton relay drills and races.
The event concluded with the students being presented with a new pair of shoes courtesy of Raiders corporate partner Shoe Palace, who also donated footwear to 40 students at both Doris Reed and Robert L. Taylor Elementary schools. Like Red Rock, the two other schools are supported by Communities In Schools (CIS), the leading dropout prevention organization that has proven to keep students in school and on the path to graduation. CIS provides an on-site site-coordinator to run resource rooms and connect students and their families to community resources such as health care, counseling, and job services.
A number of Raiders executives were on hand to support the event including President Sandra Douglass Morgan as well as Sr. Vice Presidents Michael Crome, Qiava Martinez and Marcel Reese. Shoe Palace also had employees on-site for the event including Brand Strategist Jesse Babico and District Manager of Las Vegas, Mike Brown.
According to Shoe Palace, getting the opportunity to work with the Las Vegas Raiders on a community event is special for a variety of reasons. Helping Las Vegas, a place that has been incredibly supportive of Shoe Palace, is meaningful. "Being able to give back and make an impact in the community is a gift we do not take for granted," said Shoe Palace President John Mersho. "We have always measured our success by how much we can give. Working with the Raiders is special, I have been a Raider fan since birth. I am grateful Shoe Palace could be a part of this give back."
This marks the latest effort to provide support for the Las Vegas community through CIS as in 2018, the Raiders donated $35,000 CIS to fund resource rooms to empower success for all students by removing barriers for at-risk youth at the schools they serve. The Raiders returned to their adopted resource room at Robert L. Taylor during 2019 Nevada Reading Week to present Roaring Reader Awards to students for their literacy achievements, host readings and conduct a Q&A with classes with the highest participation in the school's Apple Core Reading Program.
Additionally, the Raiders Foundation, the charitable arm of the Raiders committed to increasing community and civic health through military support and youth development, held a signature event titled "Celebrity Swing" in 2019 with more than $200,000 raised for CIS of Southern Nevada to help make a lasting impact on our local community.
