Reading, Pa. (Nov. 10, 2010) - The Crusader Softball team visited the Opportunity House in Reading, Pa. on Wednesday afternoon to spend some time with the children at the Second Street Learning Center. The team read and played with the children, helped them with homework and helped care for the infants.

The Opportunity House is a multi-service organization that improves the quality of life for children, families and adults who face various obstacles to independence, and supports their efforts to achieve and maintain self-sufficiency and well-being. The softball squad arrived just as most of the children were returning to the Learning Center after their school day. The children were thrilled to have some new faces to play with, senior pitcher Michelle Jensen noted that "the thing that I enjoyed the most about volunteering at the Opportunity House was seeing how happy the children were that they had someone new to play with them and how we were able to put big smiles on their faces." Her sentiments were echoed by the entire team and freshman shortstop Katie Manowski said that "I think it made their day, they were all great kids and I could have been there all day."

The team was divided up between the outdoor playground areas, the 'tween' room, the infant room and the toddler area. Some of the team also assisted with general clean-up and decorating for the holidays. Head Coach Lindsay Berger selected the Opportunity House to volunteer at because "it is an excellent organization that gives us the chance to give back to the local community and share some of our knowledge and energy with the kids. We have some great local student-athletes on our team that can provide a tangible inspiration to the children at the Second Street Learning Center."

The Crusaders will return again to the Opportunity House in December to work with the children again.