Summer has officially ended. I tried to extend it as long as possible, but I couldn’t stop classes from starting this year. However, I feel satisfied that I was able to pack in as much as I could this summer. I coached a group of high school athletes in Australia, spent two weeks in Hawaii on the return trip with my family, hiked my annual 14’er in Colorado with alumni and friends, and just finished a 21 mile day-hike in Sleeping Giant Provincial Park in Canada with a high school teammate. I am thankful to have such great people in my life to go on all these adventures.
We started our season with the first practice on Monday. It is a large team this year with 32 freshmen (11 who competed at the state meet). The freshmen will add some depth in needed areas and complement a strong group of returning athletes. I will provide a more detailed preview later this fall.
Along with the beginning of the season, is the annual Go Johnnies Challenge on Thursday, September 12. We always rely on your support to provide a positive experience for our athletes. It becomes harder each season as our expenses have increased dramatically over the last several years. Buses alone will cost us $22,000 for the year and will eat into our budget of $26,000. That doesn’t leave much left for juice.
Your past support has been greatly appreciated and made a tremendous impact on the team experience. The donations have allowed us to have a large roster which provides a strong team atmosphere, purchase necessary equipment, and cover yearly food/travel expenses.
The Go Johnnies website is active and we have generous matching and challenge gifts to encourage your participation. A big thank you to Chris Lee and Jerry and Laura Colbert for getting us started!
It’s easy for you to help us have a successful campaign once again.
1. Simply donate to the Challenge at www.gojohnnies.com/gjc24
2. Become and Advocate for the <<Sport>> program. You can help to encourage others to donate by pushing the campaign out on your social media accounts or contact classmates and teammates to encourage them to donate. You can start this process through the link below.
3. Consider making a matching gift to the campaign. These are used to encourage others to donate by matching their gift with an additional amount. You can set this up through the link below.
4. Share the www.gojohnnies.com/gjc24 link on your personal social media pages and invite others to support Johnnie <<Sport>>