Recipients of 2023 Community Service Award, Iowa State Cyclones Yet Again Go Extra Mile to Make a Difference

The Iowa State wrestling team is making a splash again, but not for its recent win against No. 21 Arizona State and California Baptist. Instead, the Iowa State wrestling team has been getting huge admiration for their true work of service. Iowa State Athletes have shown genuine engagement in improving people’s lives. For the same, they received the 2023 Community Service Award recently.

During its Big 12 football matchup against TCU on 7 October 2023, Iowa State received the prestigious honor for its Cyclones Serve initiative. In the last season, they dedicated over 4,500 hours to community service making Cyclones Serve a huge success. Iowa State Cyclones athletes have received notable attention for community service, recently adding yet another feat to their communal endeavors.

Team spirit beyond wrestling

Besides performing on the competition mat with zeal and great enthusiasm, the Iowa State wrestling team never shies away from serving people. ISU Wrestling took to its official X handle to share the notable achievements of the team. Along with posting the team picture with a cute child, they captioned the post as ”It was a scary Sunday evening for one family at ISU’s team hotel, but the Cyclone wrestling squad stepped in to help save the day.”. The caption further reads, ”Iowa State Wrestling Team Helps Find Lost Child.”

Under the aegis of the ISU wrestling head coach Kevin Dresser, the entire Cyclone wrestling team began searching for the missing stranger kid immediately. In no time, Strength and Conditioning coach Ben Durbin called 911 to find the missing kid, Marley. The whole team with struggler Harley desperately searched the property on 7 Jan.

Iowa State team’s heroic effort

After a thorough inspection of all speculated areas including the pool area, hallways, fitness center, and parking lots, the team searched diligently behind the bushes and under the cars. After 20 minutes of searching, Iowa State’s 197-pounder Julien Broderson finally found the lost kid Marley who was sitting in the hotel’s parking garage’s corner behind the gate and crying.

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Holding the child, Broderson added, “I picked him up, told him it was going to be okay, and that I was going to bring him back to his dad. He held onto me super tight the entire way.” Broderson was aware of the severity of the situation as he recently became the father last summer.

“I put myself in that dad’s shoes immediately,” he added. He went through every emotion of the situation. “I can’t even imagine what Matt was going through and I hope I don’t ever feel the way he felt during that 20-or-so minutes. I texted Macie, my fiancé, afterward and told her about the entire situation. It was crazy,” he said.

Harley expresses gratitude for Marley’s safe return, thanking the Iowa State wrestling team for their efforts. The incident indeed proved the team’s willingness to serve the community.

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