STANDISH, Maine – First-year Head Coach Bill Cosentino has been heavily recruiting some of the best talent since being named as the Monks' men's lacrosse skipper late last summer, but on Thursday he landed the most impactful young man on his list: 13-year old Joshua Peterson of Ossipee, New Hampshire.
As announced in a press conference held in the SJC Hall of Fame Room on Thursday evening, Joshua is the first child to be matched with a Monks team through Team IMPACT, an organization that seeks to improve the quality of life for children facing life-threatening and chronic illnesses through the power of team.
Through Team IMPACT, young boys and girls become official members of collegiate athletics teams, starting on draft day and continuing all the way through to graduation. The child joins the athletic team and the student-athletes join the child's support team. The child gains great strength, camaraderie, and support and the student-athletes are taught lessons about courage, resiliency, and life perspective that they can't learn in a classroom.
When asked about bringing Joshua into the program, Coach Cosentino stated "We are so excited to welcome Joshua to our team. We believe he can help teach the men on our team valuable lessons about perseverance and character. In turn, I know our team will teach Joshua the importance of camaraderie, hard work, and discipline, while also having a good time."
Adopted by Jennifer and Bob Peterson when he was eight, Joshua was born with only half a heart and received a heart transplant when he was 10 years old. Joshua suffered a stroke after his transplant and is still doing PT, OT, and speech therapy.
In spite of all the hardships he has faced – and continues to face – with his health, friends and family members know Joshua to be incredibly bright, sweet, and sensitive. He has 10 siblings and his favorite activities include riding his bike, origami, coloring, Legos, puzzles, and his therapeutic horse riding classes. He loves listening to Charlie Puth, the color blue, eating noodles and fried dumplings, and his favorite movies are Fast and Furious and Ironman.
CELEBRATORY SIGNING VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS:
ABOUT TEAM IMPACT:
Team IMPACT is a national organization, based in Boston, whose mission is to improve the quality of life for children facing life-threatening and chronic illnesses through the power of team. Team IMPACT children are drafted onto college athletic teams, local to where they live and, in effect, become official members of the team from Draft Day through to Graduation. Established in 2011, Team IMPACT has matched over 1,100 children with collegiate teams at over 450 institutions in 46 states, improving the quality of life of hundreds of courageous children and touching the lives of over 30,000 student-athletes.
Team IMPACT is actively looking for more children to participate in the program. Do you know of a child ages 5-15 who could use a social or psychological boost and would benefit from the support and camaraderie that comes from being part of a team? Refer them to Team IMPACT! Visit www.GoTeamIMPACT.org to learn more.
Men's Lacrosse signs Team IMPACT's Joshua Peterson
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
