A year and a half ago, I had the pleasure of interviewing Stacey Nelson for a feature story, and she told me about her love for Africa and helping people.
"I don't know why I'm so interested in Africa, but I am," Nelson said in 2008. "I took Swahili. I was hoping to go over there in the Peace Corps, but they don't send people to East Africa anymore because it's too dangerous. I just wanted to get involved because of all the people struggling over there."
Nelson finished her last season as a Gator as the school's leader in every meaningful pitching category and the best player on UF's first-ever trips to the Women's College World Series, including a heartbreaking loss to Washington in last season's finals.
Wednesday, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Stacey Nelson again, and the subject matter of our conversation didn't change a whole lot.
Except she's no longer speculating about her future in humanitarianism - she's acting.
Nelson, who is still living in Gainesville while she finishes up her undergraduate degree, has started Stacey Nelson's Get Educated, Get Rewarded! Scholarship Program.
"My plan is to give out scholarships to high school Juniors who respond to a challenge following a presentation on the current humanitarian crisis in Northern Uganda," reads a statement on Nelson's Web site.
She gave her first presentation Wednesday and will be focusing on four Gainesville-area high schools: Buchholz, Gainesville, Eastside and Oak Hall.
Any high school student may apply and write an essay demonstrating his or her understanding of the current crisis in Uganda.
Needless to say, I doubt very much I would be able to qualify for her scholarship.
Nelson has already raised enough money through private donations to award one $500 first-place scholarship, and depending on how much money she is able to raise, there will be multiple second- and third-place scholarships worth $250 and $100, respectively.
Her work to both develop and put into effect a scholarship in her name is incredibly impressive in its own right, but it doesn't stop there. Nelson, who hopes to earn a law degree in international humanitarian law, has made a habit of giving back.
Last spring, the softball team hosted Swing for Cancer, and Nelson mowed down Florida athletes and coaches from inside the circle in the name of charity.
On Oct. 23, she decided athletes and coaches weren't enough and teamed up with former Gators pitcher and current UF med student Stacey Stevens in striking out students to raise money for Project Heal, a group that takes a medical outreach trip to Ecuador each spring break.
Later this month, Nelson will travel back to Japan - one of the stops she made as a member of Team USA over the summer - to strike out Japanese athletes and celebrities for a cause yet to be determined (last year, it was physical disabilities).
Evidently, mowing down overmatched batters in the name of helping others in the Western Hemisphere wasn't enough.
"It's kind of a snowball effect," Nelson said of her constant involvement. "It feels good to do good."
She plans to use her spring semester - the one she would be taking "off" between undergrad and law school - to finally make her trip to Africa for a few weeks as a teaching volunteer for children.
Giving back to the community - be it local, national or global - is just as much a part of who Nelson is as softball. In fact, more so.
"I never wanted to be looked at as just a softball player," she said. "I wanted to be looked at as a girl who played softball."
Perhaps the perfect attitude for a public figure to have.
Athletes don't ask to be thought of us as role models, but they are just the same. Luckily for Nelson, and everyone her hard work touches, she happens to be a role model first and a dominant pitcher second.
It's incredibly easy for an athlete, or any college-age person, to sit in an interview room and talk about giving back to the community later in life. Too often, we are all guilty of starting ideas we never have the wherewithal to close.
Nelson will forever be remembered in Gainesville as one of the greatest starting pitchers UF has ever seen.
And she's making one helluva a push to be remembered as one of the greatest closers, as well.
Off the field, of course.
If you would like to donate money to or get more information about Stacey Nelson's scholarship program, you can contact her at sn.geteducated@gmail.com or visit her Web site at plaza.ufl.edu/staceyn. Or join her Facebook group: Stacey Nelson's Get Educated, Get Rewarded! Scholarship Program.
