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San Francisco, CA -- The Academy of Art women's soccer team is not taking any breaks off during the off-season, as spring training is right around the corner. That busy schedule also keeps up with the Urban Knight commitment to community service, as the Knights took part in an event put on by Project Open Hand, a program that has been providing meals to people living with serious illnesses and to seniors in San Francisco and Alameda County since 1985.

"I more than enjoyed our time at Project Open Hand," said senior Megan Bucci. "I live only four blocks from the location and I'm sure I share the same neighborhood as many of the recipients of the meals we helped prepare. I felt a sense of connection to this organization due to the fact that it is in my community, and spreading a healthy lifestyle to those who cannot provide that for themselves is a great cause."

Project Open Hand provides people with symptomatic HIV/AIDS in San Francisco and Alameda counties daily home-delivered meals or weekly groceries, depending on their physical condition. They also provide home delivered meals to people who are homebound and critically ill with any serious medical condition, such as cancer, breast cancer and diabetes and severe arthritis.

"I think that Project Open Hand is a great organization," said junior Tanner McCandlish. "It was really rewarding to be working with the community in order to bring heart-felt meals to people in need."

The Knights players and new assistant coach Katie Oakes helped prepare and package food in the Project Open Hand kitchens in the Polk Street neighborhood in San Francisco. The project provides hot lunches to seniors at various congregate sites all over San Francisco. Project Open Hand also provides nutrition counseling with registered dietitians to our clients at Project Open Hand or at clients' homes.
"I enjoyed my time working for Project Open Hand. It is such an amazing program and has changed many people's lives for the better," said freshman defender Sophie Meneses. "I am interested in going back in the future and volunteering my time again."

For the Urban Knights, it was more evidence that just as the rigors on the field require year-round attention, those responsibilities and opportunities provided to student-athletes don't take a long off-season either.