Ashlee Trantow, fiancée of G Dan Buenning, reads a book to a rapt audience
The first grade students at Shaw Elementary received some special visitors on Thursday when members of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Women's Organization dropped by their classrooms to read to them.
Cindy Gruden, along with fellow Women's Organization members Bethany Bidwell, Brook Griese, Katy McCown, Barbara Muir, Danielle Simms, Erica Steussie and Ashley Trantow, visited the school as a way to promote literacy and a love of reading. Each year, the Buccaneers Women's Organization selects a school in need to be the recipient of the reading program.
The women read holiday books and other fun stories to the first-graders, all of whom were eager to listen and discuss the stories afterward. The Buccaneer women asked the students questions about the books in order to emphasize reading comprehension and understanding.
Trantow, fiancée of rookie guard Dan Buenning, is currently a realtor with experience teaching third, fifth, sixth and eighth grades. She misses the kids and the classroom atmosphere so much that she is pursuing a job-sharing position in education while continuing her career in real estate.
"I'd like to teach again," said Trantow. "I really enjoy working with kids. I like what I call the 'ah-ha moments,' when a child who hasn't understood something finally understands. It's a feeling of satisfaction you can't get anywhere else."
The Buccaneer women were honored to be able to serve as a positive influence for the students, and they had fun reading the stories, too.
"The kids love it when we read," said Gruden. "They're so excited, and we just love being here and sharing with the kids."
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Walker Gives Back to Hometown
Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive tackle Kenyatta Walker recently found a great way to say thank you to several organizations that supported him during his youth. Growing up in Meridian, Mississippi, Walker was a member of the local Boys & Girls Club.
With funds raised through the Kenyatta Walker Football Camp last May, the Kenyatta Walker Foundation was able to donate a total of more than $8,000 to Meridian Public School, Laudale County School, Boys & Girls Club of East Mississippi and the Drew Denney Foundation.
The Kenyatta Walker Foundation plans to hold another football camp in Meridian in May, 2006.
