WSU Quarterback Alex Brink Makes Time For Local Elementary Children
Dec. 7, 2007(U-WIRE) PULLMAN, Wash. — It’s almost midnight on Wednesday, and Alex Brink is just getting home from a three-day trip in New York City.
In the past 24 hours, he’s flown across the country, transferred planes, and then made the foggy drive from the airport in Spokane down to Pullman.
All the while, his final days at WSU are slipping away.
Brink, pledging to make the most of his time left in Pullman before graduating later this month, walks in his door, opens up his computer and sees he has an unread message in his e-mail box. It’s Lorna Bruya, a teacher at Sunnyside Elementary that he’s come to know well during the past four years.
"Alex. We missed you Tuesday. I know you were out of town, but it’d be great if we could see you one final time by the end of this week."
Four years ago, back before anyone even knew who he was, Brink began taking part in a program that sounded kind of cool to him. WSU Reading Buddies is an activity where some athletes pick a morning or two each week to read with kids at Sunnyside.
This semester, Tuesday was his day, and with finals next week, this was the last week of the program for the semester.
But this Tuesday, he was on that trip to New York as a finalist for the Draddy Trophy (an award that, not surprisingly enough, recognizes athletes who have a combined academic success and exemplary community leadership).
"The trip had sort of slipped my mind, and I forgot that I wasn’t going to be around on the final Tuesday," Brink said.
So on Thursday morning, about eight hours after reading the e-mail, there Brink was in the Sunnyside Library, waiting for his buddy McKenna when she arrived at school for the day.
Alex had decided this moment was way too important to miss.
"I knew he’d make it if he could," Bruya said.
Reading Buddies was started in 2002 by women’s soccer player Niki Ironside. She started the program as part of her Honors College thesis project. Every year since, it has grown.
This semester, Brink was one of 35 student-athletes participating in it on a regular basis, which is amazing when you consider the schedules and different commitments they already face.
Senior swimmer Bryn Mooney gets up every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for 6 a.m. practice. And since afternoon practices are five days a week, Tuesday and Thursday mornings would seem to be her opportunity to sleep a little. But no. Every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 8, Mooney is at Sunnyside, hanging with her buddy, Allie. Thursday they played Memory and read a Christmas book, something she says she would never trade for sleeping.
"There’s something about the kids," she said. "They start your day off on the right foot no matter what."
Then there’s Vaughn and Reed Lesuma, the two brothers from the WSU football team. This entire season, the two have carpooled to Sunnyside together every Thursday.
"I had a reading buddy when I was a kid, and I remember how cool that was," Reed said. "So it’s a lot of fun to do it for someone else."
"It’s awesome what some of these athletes do," Bruya said. "The kids really cherish the one-on-one time they get with the athletes. They walk a little taller after they get their time with them."
Brink remembers when he first heard about it as a freshman.
"I remember thinking, ‘This isn’t huge and it won’t take a lot of my time,’" he said. "But I know what kind of impact small things like this can have on kids."
Most of the athletes in the room Thursday will be back next semester. Alex won’t be though, with the NFL Draft calling.
So before he left Sunnyside one last time, his buddy had envelope for him. In it was a picture, a few other sentimental things and a card.
"It was fun sharing you for a reading buddy. Good luck always. McKenna." Alex smiles.
Then he walks over the Bruya and gives her a hug.
"Thanks for everything," he said. "I’ll keep in touch."
"We’ll be keeping an eye on you," she promised.
Of course, a lot of eyes will be following Alex when he leaves Pullman here in a few days. They always have. That comes with the territory of his day job.
But for all the eyes and all the judgments that have been passed on the WSU quarterback over the years, maybe the judgments can come with perspective knowing now what Alex has done with his time when the eyes weren’t on him.
Because at the end of the day, he’s among a group of athletes who have taken their position as role models and done exactly what we always hope they would do with it.
So regardless of how you feel about his place in the WSU history books, know this about Alex Brink.
His brightest moments came when you weren’t watching.