Word travels fast in the Bulldog Nation when somebody needs a little help, and that's what happened when a Hall County non-profit lost its UGA-themed scarecrow to vandals earlier this month.
When University of Georgia alumni read the news about the display created by the special needs adults who make up Aim 2 Be3, they began posting information on fan Facebook pages. Several called the Alumni Office in Athens to see if there was some way to help. One fan sent the AccessWDUN article to UGA Women's Basketball Coach Joni Taylor.
"Joni then immediately sent it to to me and ask that I handle whatever the request may be," said Katie Honeycutt, UGA's Director of Recruiting Operations and Player Development. Honeycutt did a little homework on Aim 2 Be3 and connected with the group's founder Marianne Thomas.
"We formed a connection and she was just so wonderful to work with and was appreciative of anything that we had," Honeycutt said. "I knew that we had some old jerseys in our storage closet that we could donate and create a wonderful basketball scarecrow. I sent pictures of the jerseys to Marianne and she said that they would work perfect."
On Monday, Oct. 25 Honeycutt delivered the gear to Thomas and the very next day the Aim 2 Be3 "friends" - as they are called - rebuilt their scarecrow display on the downtown Gainesville Square.
Thomas said she never imagined the outpouring of support Aim 2 Be3 would get.
"I know we live in a great community and we've got a lot of support, but just the outpouring of support and the amount of support we got was truly humbling," Thomas said. "This story went as far as Florida and we've made new friends with alumni in Florida...we've been blown away by just how welcoming the Dawg Nation really is."
One of those Florida alumni is Dave Howard, the President of the Southwest Florida UGA Alumni Chapter. He called his contact at the UGA Alumni Office in Athens, but by the time he made his call, Honeycutt was already working with Aim 2 Be 3. He said he wasn't surprised at the quick action by his alma mater.
"No Dawg barks alone," Howard said in a phone interview. "On the court, on the field, on the diamond...anywhere that life takes us, we'll always be Dawgs."
Part of that Dawg spirit, Howard said, is stepping in to help whenever they see a place to serve.
Thomas said not only did the Lady Dawgs basketball team offer up team gear and pennants and other items for their scarecrow display, but the team has also invited the Aim 2 Be3 friends to a Lady Dawgs game in Athens. She said they're looking at the schedule now to see when they can go.
"We are so looking forward to cheering them on and supporting them in the way they have supported us," Thomas said.
Aim 2 Be3 said once Halloween is over, they'll take the items from the new scarecrow and put them in a shadow box so they can have a permanent display at their Gainesville facility.
