Bucknell University Athletics
MacLean Shines as Bucknell's Angel in the Infield
2/20/2012 7:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 20, 2012
By Becky Hart, Bucknell Athletic Communications
This story is about Alex MacLean. Judging by her track record, however, she probably would rather the attention be directed elsewhere. MacLean knows that, unlike many people, she has a pretty good life. She is half way through her third year at one of the top schools in the country, looking forward to her junior season with Bucknell softball and planning for a summer internship with a Boston hospital. Life could hardly be better, but while she's enjoying her opportunities, MacLean will undoubtedly be thinking about those she calls "my children" who are literally battling for lives of their own.
It began when MacLean was a junior at Northampton High School and she and a friend on the student council made the simple decision to start a Valentine's Day dance. The "Angel Thirty Four-mal" was born with the hopes of raising $500 for the Angel 34 Foundation, an organization dedicated to bringing hope and opportunities to those with childhood cancer. But instead of $500, the formal brought in nearly $3,000 and the event repeated the next year. MacLean's next few summers were then spent volunteering for the organization.
MacLean began her Bucknell career in 2009-10, but that did not mean the end of her involvement with Angel 34. While including her new Bison teammates in the cause was a first step, the pitcher went even farther when she became the foundation's first intern last summer. Among her duties was helping to organize Angel 34's camps, including Camp Sweet Pea and the newest program, Derek's Camp Flip Flop, that provide kids and their families the chance at some rare outdoor fun.
Bike riding and treasure hunts on the beach are just a few of the activities Angel 34 is able to provide with the help of volunteers like MacLean. The foundation was founded in 2003 by Nicole Sheriff whose goal was for all children to have an angel with them during their battle with cancer. Sheriff passed away from Ewing's Sarcoma at the age of 15, a year after starting Angel 34.
"Since her passing, her parents have taken over the reins of the program that she initiated," explains MacLean. "They do aqua therapy, art therapy, music therapy, garden therapy. They have the ICEE program, which is probably the most popular out of all the programs they do. Angel 34 puts ICEE machines in pediatric children's hospitals. What Nicole found during her battle was that the carbonation and the fluffiness of the drink helped with stomach sores and mouth sores from the chemo. I think they have about 16 or 17 in now, but the ultimate goal is to get one in all the children's hospitals in the United States."
With such inventive ways to ease the effects of childhood cancer, it's not difficult to see what keeps MacLean committed. The best part of her time with Angel 34, she says, is working with the kids.
"It's the best feeling ever. Being able to know that you're helping someone else that doesn't have the same blessings that you have makes me appreciate things so much more, especially softball or swimming," says MacLean. "Those children, the only pool they can swim in is the pool at Angel 34 because they're not allowed to go in public swimming pools. There's too much bacteria and they can get infections so easily. So that being their one place where they can go and play and be a kid is the best part of it."
MacLean's dedication has proved to be contagious to the rest of Bucknell softball. The Northampton, Pa., native often encourages teammates to write letters to "her children" who have been sick, and last year they embraced the Lacing Up for a Cure initiative to promote childhood cancer awareness.
"You buy a gold shoelace and you wear it in your right shoe to take a right step towards curing childhood cancer," said MacLean.
Creating Thanksgiving baskets for the local food bank and collecting old shoes for donation add to the list of the softball squad's community projects. MacLean is the first to acknowledge that, by themselves, none of the team's activities seems like much. She is also the first to realize, however, that every little bit does help.
"I think it really just gives us the opportunity to realize how lucky we are to be here and how lucky we are to have a skill that allows us to do something so special, especially getting out and getting in the community, meeting new people," says MacLean about her teammates' volunteerism.
"Kids see you when you're out at the store and they run up. The funniest thing is when a kid asks you for your autograph. I don't know how to sign an autograph. I only sign my name on paper. They bring you up a marker and are like, `Can you sign my shirt?' `Ok, I'll do the best I can,'" MacLean says, laughing. "It's so good to be such a positive role model for such a young person. I know I had role models when I was young, and it's good to be in that position myself. And I'm sure my teammates feel the same way."
MacLean and the rest of the Bison will turn some of their attention to getting back to the top of the Patriot League standings this spring. A key player in the Bison's recent success, MacLean was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Year, Second Team All-League and Patriot League Tournament MVP in 2010 when Bucknell won the league championship and made its first-ever NCAA Regional appearance. She was seven strikeouts shy of breaking the single-season record last spring and is currently fifth at Bucknell in career strikeouts with 208.
When she's not on the field, the junior is working on her interdepartmental studies degree, which focuses on linguistics and education. The ability to create her ideal program has turned out to be one of the best things about her experience in Lewisburg.
"It's definitely one of the things I liked about Bucknell," says MacLean. "Coming here I was like, `Chemistry? Definitely not. Bio? No. Engineering? No.' So I had no Idea what I wanted to do when I came, but the major really allowed me to zone in on something that I really wanted to do."
That something that she really wants to do is be a speech and language pathologist. MacLean will take a step closer to her dream job this summer when she heads to Boston for an internship in audiology and speech testing at a children's hospital.
Angel 34 will surely miss MacLean's presence at its camps this summer, but MacLean is certainly not forgetting organization. She is always willing to speak to anyone and everyone about the foundation's work. Her car is often full of letters, blankets and other donations to be passed along. So while this story is about Alex MacLean, she probably would rather the attention be directed to her children and their daily battle with cancer.
For more information and ways to support the Angel 34 Foundation, visit angel34.org.
Note: This story appeared in a recent edition of the Bucknell Basketball Gameday Program.
