Last year, RBHS hung seven newly earned state title banners across the far gymnasium wall along with the 23 other athletic state titles earned since the school opened.
While the dedication, work ethic and talent of the student athletes is considered the main reason for the frequency of achieving state titles, another factor may attribute to athletic success.
Since 2002, the RBHS Booster Club, along with a multitude of generous corporate sponsors, has furthered its financial assistance to the athletic department with the annual fundraising dinner and auction, titled ‘For the Love of the Game’.
Each year, the silent and live auction and dinner raises money for large scale projects and renovations to support RBHS athletics.
On Nov. 10, the Rock Bridge Booster Club will host the 10th anniversary of For the Love of the Game at Stoney Creek Inn at 6 p.m.
At the beginning of its creation, the Booster Club planned For the Love of the Game to be a three-phase campaign. Phase one involved renovating practice fields, phase two slated for the creation of a soccer field, but instead worked to install synthetic turf, and phase three planned for the creation of a concession stand and restrooms by the baseball field.
Since the creation of the For the Love of the Game, the fundraiser has funded numerous projects such as the expansion and renovation of the athletic training room, and providing weight room equipment, storage buildings to house equipment and fencing to protect practice fields, For the Love of the Game General co-chair Kay Hake said.
“Due to budget cuts at CPS, there is no funding for athletic programs, so For the Love of the Game supplements the Rock Bridge athletic budget,” Hake said in an email interview. “This is the largest fundraiser at Rock Bridge. We usually have around 350 [attendees at the banquet] and expect at least that many this year.”
The 10th year anniversary is also the year in which the fundraiser will succeed in reaching its goal of raising one million cumulatively over the past 10 years.
The Booster Club will invest this year’s donations in promoting the athletic department’s success.
“The auction is very close [to raising $1 million]. We need to raise about $100,000 to make the $1 million mark,” Hake said. “The auction is such a great event; it sells itself since it’s helping the kids.”
Athletic director Jennifer Mast also said that the money raised from this year’s For the Love of the Game fundraiser will go toward important sporting projects and events. CPS funds alone will not be able to fully cover the costs.
“We’re still waiting to find out about whether the district is going to be able to afford the purchase of new weights for our weight room,” Mast said. “First and foremost, we want to make sure that those weights are purchased, so whatever the district can’t do with that project I think For the Love of the Game money will take care of.”
The event also has six Gold Level Sponsors, which are businesses that have donated at least $2,500, and 19 Green Level Sponsors, businesses that have donated at least $1,500.
For the past three years, one of the corporate Green Level Sponsors for the event as part of Miller, Bales & Cunningham, P.C., is Jodi Bales, mother of senior varsity soccer and golf player Tyler Bales.
“I think it is really thoughtful that my mom and other sponsors are able and willing to help out Rock Bridge athletics,” Tyler Bales said. “It’s valuable to all of our teams and appreciated by all of the athletes.”
During his time playing for the RBHS soccer team, the Bruins received new warm up and game uniforms, as well as new soccer balls and soccer nets, courtesy of the Booster Club and For the Love of the Game.
“I think it is definitely a help to have the Booster Club because it covers the basics of what we need to play. Without it, it would require more fundraising from each individual sport to cover the basics,” Tyler Bales said. “It’s gotten us excited to play and wear our new uniforms proudly.”
The hard and persistent work and preparation put into For the Love of the Game is apparent through the dedication and thoughtfulness of the members of the Booster Club and corporate sponsors, as well as the frequent successes of the RBHS athletics department.
For the Love of the Game “is an extremely strong message of support for athletics at Rock Bridge. Parents and community put a lot of work into that event and it raises a lot of money and it takes care of some needs that wouldn’t be taken care of any other way,” Mast said. “It tells our athletes that they’re important and that these supporters are going to do what they can to help them with facilities.”
By Jacqueline LeBlanc