Although snow days, Christmas, and mid-afternoon sunsets are still far on the horizon, winter sports teams are already starting to join together and warm up. Before the first practices or games, each team has to raise money or awareness for a charity cause of its choice, and several teams have already gotten their activism projects underway.
The boys’ swim team is already way ahead of the game. This summer, two members of the team participated in the Swim Across the Sound, a swim race in the Long Island Sound organized by St. Vincent Medical Center to raise money for cancer research.
The Staples swim team’s participation was a remarkable success. According to captain Kyle Bacon ’12, the team placed fifth out of 35 and raised over $11,000.
“The swim took six hours and was very tiring, but we had a lot of fun and kept ourselves motivated because we knew that we were swimming for such an honorable cause,” Bacon said.
Another team captain, Joss Abel ’12, also appreciated participating in the race, despite the challenges of both swimming and fundraising.
“It was more challenging than I could have ever imagined,” he said. “However, despite the hardships of the event, I can’t wait to do it again next year.”
Abel said that it took the team months to meet its fundraising goal and finally reached the mark three days before the race. The team ran carwashes, sent out sponsorship requests, and ran advertisements in local newspapers.
In addition to Bacon and Abel, girls’ swim captain Gabby Wimer ’12 participated in the race.
While the swim team was fundraising for cancer research, another winter team was busy creating a scholarship fund. The boys’ indoor track team has been working with the outdoor track and cross-country teams to raise money for the Laddie Lawrence Scholarship, named after the coach of all three teams.
“Each scholarship can make a significant impact on the future education of our athletes,” said captain Max Hoberman ’12. Hoberman described the fund as a “need-based scholarship” given to an athlete who the team and Lawrence believe needs it most.
Lawrence added that the team also participates in a five mile run on Thanksgiving to support several local programs, including the Westport EMS and Norwalk’s Domestic Violence Crisis Center.
In addition to raising money for charity causes, many teams held fundraisers to pay for equipment and transportation expenses. The wrestling team, for instance, needs to raise money to support itself in addition to providing for charity causes.
“Any fundraising the wrestling team does is to make sure we have the funds we need,” wrestling coach Kevin Lippert said. “We have responded to individual requests for support with other charities, but we don’t have a specific charity we support.”
In the season of giving, Staples sports teams give back to the community in a variety of ways. For his part, Abel loves being in the giving spirit.
“We chose to do it because we were able to utilize our talents to help others less fortunate,” Abel said.
The boys’ swim team is already way ahead of the game. This summer, two members of the team participated in the Swim Across the Sound, a swim race in the Long Island Sound organized by St. Vincent Medical Center to raise money for cancer research.
The Staples swim team’s participation was a remarkable success. According to captain Kyle Bacon ’12, the team placed fifth out of 35 and raised over $11,000.
“The swim took six hours and was very tiring, but we had a lot of fun and kept ourselves motivated because we knew that we were swimming for such an honorable cause,” Bacon said.
Another team captain, Joss Abel ’12, also appreciated participating in the race, despite the challenges of both swimming and fundraising.
“It was more challenging than I could have ever imagined,” he said. “However, despite the hardships of the event, I can’t wait to do it again next year.”
Abel said that it took the team months to meet its fundraising goal and finally reached the mark three days before the race. The team ran carwashes, sent out sponsorship requests, and ran advertisements in local newspapers.
In addition to Bacon and Abel, girls’ swim captain Gabby Wimer ’12 participated in the race.
While the swim team was fundraising for cancer research, another winter team was busy creating a scholarship fund. The boys’ indoor track team has been working with the outdoor track and cross-country teams to raise money for the Laddie Lawrence Scholarship, named after the coach of all three teams.
“Each scholarship can make a significant impact on the future education of our athletes,” said captain Max Hoberman ’12. Hoberman described the fund as a “need-based scholarship” given to an athlete who the team and Lawrence believe needs it most.
Lawrence added that the team also participates in a five mile run on Thanksgiving to support several local programs, including the Westport EMS and Norwalk’s Domestic Violence Crisis Center.
In addition to raising money for charity causes, many teams held fundraisers to pay for equipment and transportation expenses. The wrestling team, for instance, needs to raise money to support itself in addition to providing for charity causes.
“Any fundraising the wrestling team does is to make sure we have the funds we need,” wrestling coach Kevin Lippert said. “We have responded to individual requests for support with other charities, but we don’t have a specific charity we support.”
In the season of giving, Staples sports teams give back to the community in a variety of ways. For his part, Abel loves being in the giving spirit.
“We chose to do it because we were able to utilize our talents to help others less fortunate,” Abel said.
