Admiral’s Athletics Club volunteers help raise money through game day admissions
Mary Rice and Jon Covington
Members of the Admiral’s Athletics Club (AAC) have been busy volunteering at athletic events and raising money to support the athletic department and BlueJacket athletes. Every year the AAC finds ways to raise money for athletics mostly through fundraisers and events, but this year a large majority of their funds will come from charging gate admission during on campus athletic events.
“When I would go to away games, the visitors would have to pay an entrance fee,” said Mary Rice, executive member of the AAC and parent of Dylan in 7th grade and Zach in 4th grade who both participate in sports. “I saw this as missing revenue for Admiral Farragut Academy.”
With over 90 sporting events on campus each year, Mary immediately started taking action by recruiting other parents to volunteer during games. Now, all parents and visitors have to pay a gate admission of $5 for Varsity and JV games and $3 for Middle School games. So far, the Admiral’s Athletics Club has raised an average of $500 per game!
“We are thinking big picture here,” said Jon Covington, president of the AAC and parent of Carson in 3rd grade. “When I started on the AAC in the beginning of the 2015-16 school year, we had under $300 in the account and now we have over $40,000! If we keep up the momentum we could potentially raise up to $45,000 a year just from game admission.”
In addition to the funds raised through gate admission, the Admiral’s Athletics Club also held a wine chance drawing which earned an impressive $14,450. The funds have been used to purchase needs such as a pizza and nacho cheese warmer for the concession, a new tractor to upkeep fields, and soon a treadmill and eliptical for the Field House. “The girls and boarding students have been asking for additional exercise equipment and we’re thrilled to be able to finally make the purchase,” explained Jon.
How to Become Involved
- Join the Admiral’s Athletics Club group on Facebook for updates.
- Email Mary Rice at marys223@yahoo.com or Jon Covington at joncov66@msn.com with your volunteer interests.
- Save the date for the upcoming Poker Run in February! (Adults Only)
- Click here to learn of other ways, other than athletics, that parents can be involved.
“I am so blessed with a great group of parents; they are awesome. We’re hoping to find more volunteers to relieve those that are volunteering all the time,” said Mary.
“Being involved in my son’s school has helped me develop a sense of community at Farragut,” said Jon. “I have become closer to people I didn’t know before and it’s really helped us all bond together.”
