Dec 11, 2019   SOURCE: BusinessWire

“Battle in the Bubble”: Third Annual Reliant Charity Flag Football Game Gives Back to Houston Community

For students preparing for college, a scholarship can set them up for success and help change the trajectory of their future. Six Houston-area high school students are now better equipped for college after being recognized for their accomplishments through Reliant’s Scholarship for Champions program. Reliant brought the energy they’re known for to celebrate the students at the third annual charity flag football game, which brought together the scholarship recipients and local media personalities to raise money for numerous charities.

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Reliant joined the Houston Texans to present $60,000 in college scholarships to six Houston-area high school students as part of the Scholarship for Champions program at the third annual Reliant Charity Flag Football Game. (Photo: Business Wire)

Reliant joined the Houston Texans to present $60,000 in college scholarships to six Houston-area high school students as part of the Scholarship for Champions program at the third annual Reliant Charity Flag Football Game. (Photo: Business Wire)

“This year’s Scholarship for Champions students are all very deserving, having shown resilience, dedication and tenacity in sports, in the classroom and in their communities,” said Elizabeth Killinger, president, Reliant. “We are happy to celebrate this annual tradition of honoring outstanding students and giving back to local nonprofits through the Reliant charity flag football game.”

Scholarship for Champions

The Scholarship for Champions program, which was created in 2005 from a partnership between Reliant and the Houston Texans, celebrates local students’ athletic and academic performance, personal character and dedication to his or her community with a $10,000 scholarship. Each recipient plays on a varsity team, maintains a minimum 3.0 grade point average and has plans to pursue a college degree. The scholarship program just surpassed the $500,000 milestone with more than 100 student athletes across Houston recognized for excelling on and off the field.

The scholarship recipients, which include athletes in cross country, soccer, volleyball, tennis, basketball, softball and baseball and many of whom play multiple sports, were surprised at personalized school assemblies among classmates and teammates in November.

The 2019 student recipients include:

  • Elijah Donajo, captain of the soccer team and cross-country runner at Dobie High School
  • Reid Easterly, captain of the baseball team at Cinco Ranch High School
  • Joshua Rassin, captain of the tennis team at Lamar High School
  • Alexandra Rossmiller, co-captain of the volleyball team, varsity cross-country runner, club soccer player, Houston Chevron Half-Marathon finisher and sand volleyball player at Carnegie Vanguard High School
  • Sophie Scott, captain of the volleyball team at Cy-Fair High School
  • Erin Smith, captain of the basketball and softball teams at Santa Fe High School

Reliant Charity Flag Football Game

Continuing the giving spirit, Houston media personalities demonstrated their athletic prowess alongside the honored high school students in a spirited game of flag football, all to raise money for nonprofits doing amazing work in the Houston area.

During Reliant’s third annual charity flag football game held at the Houston Methodist Training Center, a total of $11,000 was raised for seven deserving charities. Raheel Ramzanali with ESPN Radio and SportsMap was crowned the 2019 “Most Valuable Player,” earning a total of $4,000 for Community Focus Foundation. In addition, Brandi Smith with KHOU-TV (CBS) raised $2,000 for Trotter Family YMCA as the “Most Improved Player,” and Jeff Ehling with KTRK-TV (ABC) raised $2,000 for Star of Hope as the “Rookie of the Year.”

The following Houston media personalities participated in the game:

  • Meagan Clanahan, Houston Moms Blog on behalf of Graeme’s Run
  • Jeff Ehling, KTRK-TV (ABC) on behalf of Star of Hope
  • Natalie Harms, InnovationMap on behalf of Big Brothers Big Sisters
  • Ubaldo Martinez, KTMD-TV (Telemundo) on behalf of Lemonade Day
  • Raheel Ramzanali, ESPN Radio and SportsMap on behalf of Community Focus Foundation
  • Brandi Smith, KHOU-TV (CBS) on behalf of Trotter Family YMCA
  • Justin Stapleton, KPRC-TV (NBC) on behalf of Mental Health America of Greater Houston

About Reliant, an NRG company

Reliant powers, protects and simplifies life by bringing electricity, security and related services to homes and businesses across Texas. Serving customers and the community is at the core of what we do, and the company is recognized nationally for outstanding customer experience. Reliant is part of NRG, a Fortune 500 company that creates value by generating electricity and providing energy solutions to more than 3.5 million residential and commercial customers across the U.S. and Canada. NRG’s competitive residential electricity business, which includes Reliant, is one of the largest in the country. For more information about Reliant, visit reliant.com and connect with Reliant on Facebook at facebook.com/reliantenergy and Twitter or Instagram @reliantenergy. PUCT Certificate #10007.