April 15, 2013
LEXINGTON, Ky. – University of Kentucky women’s basketball junior guard Kastine Evans has been awarded the prestigious Darrell A. VanMeter Community Service Award and will be honored Monday night at the Annual Spring Honors and Recognition Awards Program sponsored by the Office of Student Involvement in the UK Student Center.
This marks the 22nd year UK has recognized the outstanding volunteer service achievements of Darrell A. VanMeter through the presentation of an undergraduate award named in his honor. VanMeter, a sophomore at the time of his death in 1991, was recognized by both the University community and his home community for his dedication to serving others.
Evans is a junior from Salem, Conn., with a grade point average of 3.735 in business management with a minor in African American studies. She participated in a service trip in Ethiopia last summer where she interacted with residents of impoverished communities, planned sporting activities with children and helped renovate houses. When she returned home, she began working with UK’s administration and compliance personnel to create her own non-profit organization for children called, “Shooting at Success.” SAS, which launched on Jan. 28, 2013, provides children from low-income families an outlet after school to help them create strong character development, establish dynamic and powerful personalities, and inspire them to achieve academically, in extracurricular activities, and in life. Evans serves as the women’s basketball Student-Athlete Advisory Committee representative and is a two-time All-SEC Academic Team member.
Evans also volunteered last summer at Lexington’s local Ronald McDonald House, a “home away from home” for seriously ill children and their families. She, along with teammate Samarie Walker (West Carrollton, Ohio), cleaned rooms in the house once a week. Other community service events include: helping pack relief bags for UK’s Joplin Tornado Relief program, volunteering as a Salvation Army bell ringer during the holiday break, and volunteering at Lexington’s Fire Prevention Parade.
On the court, Evans has seen action in 103 career games, while starting 58. She has been a member of back-to-back NCAA Tournament Elite Eight squads and a Southeastern Conference Championship team in 2012.
Evans was also named to the 2013 SEC Community Service Team and is a finalist for the Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar Award.
