They may not be the loudest or craziest fans, but sitting in the front row at many of Northwest College's athletic events are some of the Trappers' most dedicated supporters. They are residents of Rocky Mountain Manor, a retirement home located five blocks from the Wyoming community college.

An outreach program that has resulted in this special partnership began last fall when Athletic Director Jim Zeigler was looking for student-athletes to explore a new role in the community. "For a change, I thought our student-athletes should adopt seniors," says Zeigler, who is also Head Wrestling Coach. "The community does so much for our student-athletes, and this felt like an opportunity for us to give back."

The giving back occurs every other Wednesday at lunchtime, when Zeigler brings seven or eight student-athletes to the Manor's dining room. The visits begin with an informal introduction at the front of the room, where student-athletes take a minute to talk about their teams, families, hometowns, and interests. From there, they have lunch with the 65 residents, sharing conversations and enjoying one another's company.

"Every time we come down to the Manor, the energy level goes through the roof," says Zeigler. "Each athlete sits at a different table, and no matter who they are or where they're from, there are always residents who find something in common with them. It gives our students a real sense of satisfaction to know they've made people happy, and they walk out of that room with the biggest smiles on their faces."

Maxie Lynn, Activities Director at Rocky Mountain Manor, echoes Zeigler's sentiments. "We have quite a few people who come to the Manor to provide entertainment, and we offer activities for residents every day," she says. "But this program feels different. It gives residents one-on-one time with young people, and it's really done a lot of good. It gives residents something special to look forward to."

After an hour, Zeigler takes his student-athletes back to Northwest for their next class, but the connections don't stop there. Some student-athletes visit the Manor on their own, and several cross-generational friendships have formed.

The lunches have also generated a new interest in Northwest athletics. Rocky Mountain Manor posts the results of all Northwest contests, and residents closely follow Northwest women's basketball and volleyball teams, whose international student-athletes have forged some of the strongest relationships in the program.

Before home games, Ziegler sends a bus with student-athletes to escort residents to Cabre Gymnasium, where they're given free front-row seats and easy access to players. The student-athlete hosts sit in the stands with residents, take orders for concessions, and ride the bus back to the Manor after the game.

"We treat them like royalty," says Zeigler. "From the time they leave the Manor until we bring them back, we want the residents to feel like insiders in our program."

In its first semester, student-athlete participants came from four of the five varsity teams at Northwest, along with their head coaches. Now in its second semester, Zeigler is expanding the program, with dance instruction led by the head volleyball coach and a lunchtime visit from the school's nationally-ranked forensics team. In the future, he'd like to include other campus departments and is convinced that similar approaches could work at other schools.

"This can be duplicated anywhere, but I think it could have a particularly strong impact at community colleges," says Zeigler. "For athletes, it's a chance to sit down with people who have lived, worked, and raised their families right here. The students are bringing joy to the seniors, and they're doing it in a very natural way, simply by having conversations and developing friendships.

"Personally, I get a ton of satisfaction watching our students grow and learn from this experience," he continues. "I can see it in their smiles, and on the faces of the seniors. Just being in the room is a joyous experience."