Dear Phoenix Club Member,

Hello, my name is Shauna Galvin, and I am a Senior on the Women’s Tennis Team from Fort Worth, Texas. In addition to being a student-athlete, I am a member of the Health, Equity, and Racism (HER) Lab, an undergraduate researcher, and a Provost Scholar. I will be graduating this May with a major in Public Health and a minor in Policy Studies. I am elated to share a bit of my life and successes at Elon that were only made possible through your generosity.

Last year, we hosted the CAA Conference Tournament. In our semifinal match, we faced College of Charleston, the number one seed. We got down 2-3 in the overall match score with two matches remaining. To keep our season alive, my teammate and I had to win both of our matches. In the third set of my match, I battled back to win the set 7-6. After tying the overall score, moments later my teammate clinched the match 4-3. I will never forget the feeling of my teammates and I running to hug Olivia after she won her final point to send us to the finals for the first time in Elon’s history since joining the CAA. We were brought to tears as we waved to the crowd who supported us through the entire match, kept us going, and cheered us on even in the tough moments. We couldn’t have done it without their support.

Similarly, I know I could not be a successful student-athlete without the support of donors like you. You constantly rise to the challenge to provide opportunities for athletes like me to come to Elon to further their dreams, both academically and athletically. Without your support, I would not be in the position to be submitting my manuscript for publication as first author this spring with the guidance of my Elon faculty mentor.

Being at Elon has given me the privilege of being able to pursue my research goals to help address inequities in maternal morbidity as it relates to race/ethnicity and borough of residence. This study has been one of my most meaningful experiences. After Elon, I plan to stay nearby and serve the Burlington community through the Elon Year of Service Fellowship, pending acceptance. Following that, I hope to attend graduate school to get my masters in the field and continue to be involved in future research projects.

I can’t express enough my most sincere gratitude for your seemingly endless support, and I know my fellow student-athletes share this sentiment. Without your gift to Elon Athletics, us student-athletes would not be able to have the opportunities to succeed at the highest level. Thank you for your kindness and generosity to the Elon Athletics family. We hope to see you watch us rise to the challenge in our competitions this spring!

Go Phoenix!

Shauna Galvin