Eastern Nazarene Women’s Basketball Pledges $2,200 in “DONAT3” Initiative

QUINCY, Mass.- The Eastern Nazarene College women's basketball team launched its "DONAT3" Initiative on October 14, the day before the 2019-20 campaign officially got under way. Head coach Sacha Santimano announced that the team would be donating $3 to three organizations for every three-pointer that the Lions made during the season, with a minimum donation of $25 to each organization per game.

This season, Eastern Nazarene connected on a league-best 157 three-pointers and pledged over $730 to each organization, totaling $2,200. The Lions also led the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) with a 30.8% clip from behind the arc.

Eastern Nazarene chose OneVOICE, DOVE, and The Dianne DeVanna Center - three organizations whose missions and purposes empower and educate women and families.

"When choosing these organizations, we did a ton of research leading up to the final decision. We felt these three could possibly make the most impact in their communities and where we could possibly make the most impact in their communities and where we could help to the best of our abilities. We wanted to make sure we were 100 percent committed to the organizations. That involved helping at events and providing assistance where needed," said Santimano.

"We wanted to connect better with our community. Having our players participate in this initiative and community service within the organizations showed them that they could impact change in a small way. It's doesn't take big things to make big changes happen, it can start on a small scale. Within our program, we always express it's the small things that make the big things happen!"

Founded by ENC women's basketball alumna Nicole Braddock Bromley, OneVOICE and OneVOICE4freedom works to stop child sex trafficking around the world by being a voice of awareness and prevention to those who are at high risk of being trafficked and giving hope and healing resources to those who have already been exploited.

DOVE works specifically with adults, teens, and children who have been abused, emotionally and financially, as well as physically and sexually.  DOVE's services include crisis intervention, danger assessment and safety planning, supportive counseling, emergency shelter, legal advocacy and representation, and community outreach, education, and training. DOVE remains the only domestic violence shelter and community-based service provider based in Norfolk County, and also serves the greater South Shore

The Dianne DeVanna Center has been reaching out to children, families and communities to provide education, support and services so that children have a stable, loving and nurturing environment to live and grow since 1978.

"The organizations provided us with several educational materials to help our community build an awareness of these three organizations. Ultimately, our goal was to bring awareness of each organization and provide information on how everyone can help," commented Santimano.

Santimano recently wrapped up her ninth season at the helm of the Eastern Nazarene College women's basketball program. She guided the Lions to an impressive 21-4 overall record in 2019-20. Eastern Nazarene posted a 13-1 mark in conference play to clinch the top seed in the NECC Tournament and reached the NECC Tournament championship game. Throughout the season, the team held awareness games dedicated to each of the organizations. "We had an amazing turnout from our entire student body as several students contributed by purchasing t-shirts or by just dropping a dollar here and there as we did this initiative," added Santimano. "Our team is extremely thankful for everyone who donated and supported this initiative!"

"I wanted our team to learn about generosity and what selflessness looks like. This initiative gave our FAMILY a chance to be a part of something bigger than each player, our program, and the ability to play for something more than themselves." offered Santimano. "Our program is built on FAMILY and being intentional about teaching values and concepts that are bigger than basketball."