The positive experiences of student-athletes tend to stay with the athletes well beyond college. That was the case for Tim Koubek and Todd Slingerland, two former Saint Rose basketball players who are seizing an opportunity to pay it forward.
Two Saint Rose alums and former basketball players – Tim Koubek ’89, CEO of Skyword and president of TrackMaven in Washington, D.C., and Todd Slingerland ’87, president and CEO of Capital Financial Planning in Albany, New York – have spearheaded fundraising opportunities to send men’s basketball team on an international trip they never had the opportunity to experiences as players.
The what:
A new project headed by basketball alums Koubek and Slingerland aims to fund a men’s basketball trip to Ireland and England in Summer 2020. The trip will cost $45,000, and $25,000 has been raised so far. Koubek and Slingerland kicked off the fundraising with their own personal contributions and have been encouraging other former Golden Knights to contribute. The remaining funds will be raised through an online crowdfunding appeal and other initiatives by the men’s basketball team.
The why:
When Koubek and Slingerland were playing basketball for Saint Rose in the 1980s, there were no international trips for teams. The tradition started soon afterward, under the tenure of longtime coach Brian Beaury. Slingerland did travel with the team to Michigan, and it was an important part of his college experience. “It was my first time in an airplane, and it was a great experience for a 19- to 20-year-old kid,” he adds.
Mike Perno, head men’s basketball coach, says international travel is an unaffordable luxury for many of his players: “This may be their only chance to go overseas.”
For Slingerland and Koubek, the project is an opportunity to give back – allowing student-athletes to explore a diversity of perspectives while driving alumni engagement. In addition to the funding, basketball alums are getting involved in other ways: Mical-Ryan Boyd ’18, for example, is helping plan activities and basketball clinics the team will be conducting. Boyd recently completed his master’s degree at The University of Derby,
and is now back in the U.S. waiting to get a contract to play professionally overseas.
“We do these things because, when we had our college experience, we got to drink from wells that we didn’t dig ourselves,” Slingerland says. “Now it’s time for us to dig a well for other students.”
The how:
To help, please contact Coach Mike Perno at pernom@strose.edu or 518.458.5495
or Ryan Venter at venterr@strose.edu or 518.458.5391 (office), 518.857.1407 (mobile).
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