PROVO, Utah — In honor of 2023 Hispanic Heritage Month, a group of BYU student-athletes, coaches and staff members wanted to commemorate the celebratory month with a day of service in their local community, traveling to Slate Canyon Youth Center in Provo on September 26.
Yolanda Bates, an assistant coach on the BYU swim and dive team, has close ties with the school so a group of BYU Hispanic student-athletes suggested to spend time there while teaching about Hispanic culture and history.
The BYU student-athletes played bingo with the groups of youth, centering around Hispanic Heritage Month trivia. Assistant coach Bates taught vocabulary words in Spanish. The staff at Slate Canyon also provided conchas, a traditional Mexican sweet bread roll and other sweets to enjoy with the youth.