Saunders honored for volunteer work
TALLAHASSEE — Florida State player Mavin Saunders was lauded for taking time out of his busy schedule and making a difference during the past 18 months at Riley Elementary School.
Saunders was honored for his efforts earlier this month when he was named the Adult Volunteer of the Year at Riley Elementary School for the 2016-2017 school year.
Saunders started the volunteer work at Riley as part of a class he took for his criminology major in the fall of 2015. He decided to keep mentoring students after it was no longer an extra-credit opportunity for his class.
“I continued doing it outside the classroom because I realized how much of an impact is made on the few kids I have been able to reach out to,” Saunders said. “I’m just trying to help out, touch a few lives and do the right thing.”
While he was volunteering four hours a week at Riley, Saunders was taking a step forward on the field as well. His redshirt sophomore season in 2016 saw Saunders rack up 182 receiving yards on 10 catches, making him a big play threat at tight end who averaged 18.2 yards per catch.
Saunders, though, differentiates his work on the gridiron from his mentoring work at Riley. In fact, no one at Florida State knew he volunteered there on a biweekly basis until it was announced that he had won the award.
“I’m not doing this for show or anything like that,” Saunders said. “My goal really is to help these kids realize the importance of school and try to live positive lives.”
Thanks, in part, to the amount of time Saunders has consistently put in at Riley, his impact has been noticeably felt at the school.
“He has made a difference at Riley Elementary in the mentoring program,” said Trace Laing, the mentoring coordinator at Riley.
“He does a tremendous job. If he can come back next year, we will welcome him back.”