{"id":1106,"date":"2018-09-10T13:49:52","date_gmt":"2018-09-10T13:49:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bringitusa.com\/live\/?p=1106"},"modified":"2019-06-28T00:24:15","modified_gmt":"2019-06-28T00:24:15","slug":"remember-puerto-rico","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bringitusa.com\/live\/remember-puerto-rico\/","title":{"rendered":"Remember Puerto Rico"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"As you wander through the cobblestone streets of old town San Juan lined with pastel colored colonial buildings and Puerto Rican flags proudly waiving from balconies, it’s tempting for a visiting tourist to forget, or ignore, the aftermath of hurricane Maria. It’s easy to get carried away by the lively music, ice-cold frappes (fruit smoothies) and deliciously rich seafood cuisine on offer. Puerto Rico’s sandy white beaches and surrounding teal blue Caribbean Sea have a way of making you feel the presence of paradise.<\/p>\n

However if you talk to anyone on the island who lived through the experience, there is no forgetting when the lights went out on September 20, 2017 –\u00a0 the night that Hurricane Maria, a category 5 storm, made direct landfall on Puerto Rico. Winds reaching 175 mph lashed out on the island for over 30 consecutive hours tearing down power lines, ripping apart rooftops and shattering windows in homes, restaurants, churches and commercial office buildings. Maria\u2019s fingerprints are everywhere; among trees with amputated branches, bent sign posts, crushed cars and collapsed rooftops.\u00a0Bridges were washed away. Power lines were torn and left dangerously dangling. A coastal surge filled homes with several feet of muddy water leaving behind dangerous mold and an eery trail of dark water stains.<\/span><\/p>\n

When the storm finally receded, virtually the entire island woke to no electricity, cell phone service or internet.\u00a0 <\/span>Refrigerators no longer kept food edible. Hospitals were unable to provide critical medical services. Diesel fuel quickly became a limited resource making cars and backup generators ineffective. On some parts of the island the power outage lasted for 9 months.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“My friend’s house was gone” reflects Steven Fenosik, a local Puerto Rican volleyball coach and professional agent on the island. “I ate dried food for a month. I did not have electricity for 2 months.\u00a0 You would wait in line at the gas station for 2 hours to get only $20 worth of gas. It was horrible. It changed me. It changed the way I view life.”<\/p>\n

\"\"It changed the volleyball community on the island too.\u00a0Puerto Rico has always been a volleyball haven.\u00a0Prior to Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico had very strong professional volleyball leagues called the Liga de Voleibol Superior Femenino (LVSF) for women and the Liga de Voleibol Superior Masculino (LVSM) for men. The women’s league was founded in 1968 and consisted of 9 teams throughout the island.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2000 the Puerto Rico Volleyball Federation and the women’s superior league directors opened the gates for non-locals to participate. Since then countless NCAA All-Americans, past and current Olympians have initiated their professional careers in Puerto Rico including Kristee Porter, Kim Glass, Kim Willoughby, Ogonna Nnamani, Erin Moore,\u00a0Stacy Gordon,\u00a0Courtney Thompson, Jessica Jones,\u00a0Shonda Cole,\u00a0Jordan Larson,\u00a0Stephanie Niemer,\u00a0Kelly Murphy,\u00a0Kristy Jaeckel,\u00a0Blair Brown,\u00a0Gina Mancuso,\u00a0Lauren Cook, Brooke Delano,\u00a0Tara Mueller,\u00a0Amanda Benson,\u00a0Michelle Barsch,\u00a0Kelsey Robinson,\u00a0Paige Tapp and\u00a0Annie Drews.<\/p>\n

Puerto Rico’s rich volleyball history doesn’t end there. The volleyball development pipeline in Puerto Rico runs both ways. From a young age many Puerto Rican volleyball players dream of receiving a scholarship to play college ball on the mainland. In fact several top NCAA volleyball team’s include Puerto Rican players.<\/p>\n

Top Puerto Rican NCAA women’s players include; Aurimar Rodriguez (Florida),\u00a0Greichaly Cepero (Nebraska),\u00a0Aury Cruz (Florida),\u00a0Noami Santos (Florida), Debora Seilhamer (USC),\u00a0Daly Santana (Minnesota), Dalianiz Rosado (Minnesota),\u00a0Pilar Marie Victori\u00e1 (Texas \/ Arkansas),\u00a0Yarleen Santiago (Arkansas),\u00a0Ana Sof\u00eda Jusino (Arkansas),\u00a0Raymariely Santos (Arkansas),\u00a0Jennifer Nogueras (Washington),\u00a0Paulina Prieto (Penn State \/ Texas),\u00a0Shannon Torregrosa (Arizona), Valeria Leon (Ohio State),\u00a0Sheila Ocasio (UNLV),\u00a0Natalia Valentin (FIU), Yarimar Rosa (FIU), Dalianliz Rosado (Minnesota) and\u00a0Yavianliz Rosado (Bradley).<\/p>\n

Top Puerto Rican NCAA men’s players include; Jose Gandara (UC Santa Barbara), Javier Gaspar (Penn State),\u00a0Ramon Hernandez (Penn State), Norman Almodovar (IPFW), Hector “Picky” Soto (IPFW), Luis “Vitito Rivera” (Lewis),\u00a0Jorge Perez (Penn State),\u00a0Carlos Ortiz (Penn State),\u00a0Edgardo Goas (Penn State),\u00a0Dennis Del Valle (Penn State),\u00a0Angel Aja (Ohio State),\u00a0Rene Estevez (Ohio State), Ivan Perez (BYU), Hector Lebron (BYU), Oswal “ozzie” Antonetti (BYU), Dennis Gonzalez (UCLA) and legendary Rick Amon (UCLA).<\/p>\n

Unfortunately both the mens and women\u2019s Puerto Rican professional volleyball seasons were canceled in 2018 due to lack of power and severe hurricane damage to gyms and other surrounding infrastructure.\u00a0 In 2019 the league is struggling to start up again with local players only (for now). Lacking sponsorships and facilities, the teams will play in whatever gyms are available for little to no money.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Just as rebounding tourism is critical to Puerto Rico\u2019s full recovery, rebuilding the professional volleyball league in Puerto Rico is vital to the development and future of the sport volleyball in Puerto Rico.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"Bradley University, Doane University and the\u00a0University of Central Florida women’s volleyball teams all took their foreign tours to Puerto Rico in 2018 bringing much needed medical supplies, sports equipment and support to the island.\u00a0USA Volleyball sent down coloring books and volleyballs collected from their “Leave a Ball Behind\u201d program. Courtney Thompson\u2019s Give It Back Foundation partnered with the Washington Volleyball program to raise significant financial support as well.<\/p>\n

All of that has helped.\u00a0 All of it is good.\u00a0 But it is not nearly enough.<\/p>\n

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approved budget falls short of the need by several billion dollars and FEMA has rejected over half of the assistance requests on the island.\u00a0 FEMA money isn’t going to rebuild Puerto Rico’s pro volleyball league, the gyms or the dozens of local club development programs and school teams that have been suspended due to the lack of infrastructure, supplies and critical funding. The volleyball community in Puerto Rico needs corporate sponsorships from volleyball specific companies and financial aid from more volleyball fans and supporters in the mainland.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you, your volleyball team or your company are interested in becoming a sponsor or making a financial donation to help Puerto Rico’s volleyball community rebuild, please contact us<\/a>.\u00a0 \u00a0If you’ve got volleyball specific equipment such as balls, nets or kneepads you’d like to donate to Puerto Rico, then BIP can help coordinate the distribution of supplies through our upcoming volleyball team service trips to Puerto Rico. If you want to make a financial donation to contribute to hurricane rehabilitation and socioeconomic development in Puerto Rico, please visit P.E.C.E.S<\/a>. website and donate here –\u00a0https:\/\/www.pecesinc.org\/<\/a>. P.E.C.E.S. is a 501(c)(3) entity and donations are fully tax deductible.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As you wander through the cobblestone streets of old town San Juan lined with pastel colored colonial buildings and Puerto Rican flags proudly waiving from balconies, it’s tempting for a visiting tourist to forget, or ignore, the aftermath of hurricane Maria. 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