Les Schwab Continues Partnership with CCC Champions of Character Program
La Grande, Ore.- Les Schwab Tires, one of the preeminent companies in the West and a leader in support of local amateur sports, will again be the title sponsor of the Cascade Collegiate Conference “Champions of Character” activities during the 2012-13 academic year, CCC commissioner Rob Cashell announced.
“The Cascade Conference is a natural fit for Les Schwab because it focuses so clearly on the values important to our company: integrity, teamwork and pride in performance stated Brian Capp, Vice President for Marketing at Les Schwab. “We are happy to support a program that builds character in student athletes by helping them to approach sports in the same way our employees help customers. We take great pride in doing the right thing by always providing honest, helpful advice and we work as a team to meet customer needs quickly and efficiently."
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)
Champions of Character program is designed to instill an understanding of character values in sport and provide practical tools for student-athletes, coaches, and athletic administrators to use in modeling exemplary character traits.
Champions of Character has identified five core values – integrity, respect, responsibility, sportsmanship, and servant leadership – that go well beyond the playing field to the daily decisions of our youth. The NAIA has launched a new
Live 5 program this fall that teaches student-athletes how they apply the five core values of
Champions of Character to everyday life both on and off the field.
"The CCC is proud to be affiliated with such an outstanding company like Les Schwab," stated Cashell. “Our two organizations share a common philosophy that character counts in all parts of life which makes this a wonderful partnership."
Based in Oregon, Washington and Idaho, the CCC’s 10 member institutions are intentional about making the Champions of Character creed a primary focus of their athletic programs. CCC athletic departments help spread the message of the five core values in a variety of ways, including visible displays of sportsmanship, community service by student-athletes and coaches, an emphasis on academic success, public address announcements before every CCC event, and educational efforts built around national championships hosted by the conference office and its members.
In the upcoming academic year, the CCC will host a pair of NAIA championships –men’s and women’s cross country Nov. 17 at Vancouver, Wash., and men’s golf May 14-17 at Salem, Ore. Both events will feature unique Champions of Character activities involving participating NAIA student-athletes reaching out to local elementary and high school students in mentor/mentee situations.
The CCC annually recognizes one male and one female as Champions of Character award winners for best exemplifying the core tenets of the program. In addition, CCC teams in 15 sports are recognized for distinguishing themselves as Champions of Character programs.
Les Schwab is one of the leading independent tire dealers in the U.S. It has more than 7,000 employees and 400 store locations in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Alaska, Montana, California, Nevada and Utah.
"Les Schwab founded the Company bearing his name in 1952 and quickly established a reputation for outstanding customer service," added Capp. "The first Les Schwab stores were opened in small towns and rural communities with one guiding principal - provide your neighbors with outstanding customer service and high quality products. This single minded focus on servicing the customer continues today. “Pride in Performance,” a slogan coined by the founder explains each employee’s commitment to providing the best tire value to customers and to standing behind their work."
For more information on the Champions of Character program, visit www.championsofcharacter.org. For more information on Les Schwab Tires, visit www.lesschwab.com.