LAKEWOOD Fourteen members of the Lakewood cross country team will race at a meet this fall in Hawaii, thanks to the success of a July 29 fundraiser.
The fundraiser of spaghetti dinner and silent auction was put on entirely by high school athletes and their parents, and they raised somewhere between $4,000 to $5,000, according to coach Jon Murray.
That figure is about a third of the estimated $14,000 the team hoped to raise, well beyond the efforts of previous years when the team traveled to less exotic locations like Portland and Boise.
Athletes served the meal to a crowd of about 170 at $10 a head, and the whole team came together to provide auction items and entertainment.
Assistant coach Alison Preisinger provided music while, Murray said, other non-athletic talents were highlighted.
One of the girls on the team is a great artist and she drew pictures of all the athletes on the team. So what parent wont bid on a picture of their kid? Another athlete made a quilt, he said. A lot of their talents other than athletic ability came out, and that was cool to see.
Fellow coach Jeff Sowards said the Iolani Invitational will provide more than just athletic opportunities for the runners.
Its on Oahu. More specifically, were running on the Ford Island, which is very historic. Its right in the middle of Pearl Harbor, Sowards said. From that area, the race director tells us, you can see the memorial for the U.S.S. Arizona.
The coaches credited school administrators and community sponsors for helping to make the trip possible. WinCo Foods donated the meal, allowing the fundraiser to be an all-profit event.
We had some great support from our administration and they realized that this would be a once-in-a-lifetime trip for some of these kids. Were really fortunate to have that kind of support, Sowards added.
The trip will take place Sept. 20-24.