By Faith Jarrell
Elm Staff Writer
Starting on Thursday, March 30, Washington College’s Athletic department launched its annual “Shore Strong” campaign. The endeavor is designed to promote donations to the various sports and athletic programs at the college.
This is the fourth year the Shore Strong campaign has been brought to WC. Those who choose to can donate to any athletics team, as well as the Athey Athletics Fund, which “offers support for all 18 programs across athletics at WC,” according to the Shore Strong website. Donations can also be made to Sports Medicine and Sports Performance.
Women’s basketball captain senior Andrea Prestianne acknowledged how important athletics can be to the students as well as the campus itself.
“Athletics has a big impact on this school and allows for great memories to be made. Support from the community encourages the athletes to continue working hard,” Prestianne said.
As for the importance of fundraising within athletics, Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics Thaddeus Moore saw how donations can make a difference firsthand.
“It is by far and away our biggest fundraiser of the year. We count on this support to help fund athletics. Whether it be training trips, certain equipment, uniforms, or all of the above, we, like most Division III schools, rely heavily on philanthropic efforts to help subsidize our department,” Moore said.
You may ask any questions you may have regarding this study by contacting any of the faculty advisors to this project, Dr. Sara Clarke-De Reza (sclarkedereza2@washcoll.edu), Dr. Meghan Grosse (mgrosse2@washcoll.edu) or Dr. Pat Nugent (pnugent2@washcoll.edu).
The Shore Strong campaign lasts for 36 hours, starting at 9 a.m. on March 30 and ending at 9 p.m. on March 31. All donations made to WC athletics will be matched by a group of donors included on the website.
“The WC athletics program, like most higher-ed athletics programs, relies heavily on donations, so participation is critical to keep the ball moving. When you make a gift during this time, it’s doubled by a dollar-for-dollar gift to the athletics program,” Director of Advancement Services and Strategy Marcus Dykeman said.
The team with the most donations will win a $10,000 training trip. The teams with the second and third most donations will earn $5,000 and $2,500.
Different teams are also hosting challenges and events in order to get more people to donate to their specific teams. For example, there is the “Young Alumni Challenge,” stating that if 35 gifts are donated from young alumni, who graduated between 2018 and 2022, Moore will jump into an ice bath.
Women’s soccer coach Thomas Reilly had his own challenge where if the women’s soccer team reached 10 donors, the students on the team could kick soccer balls at Reilly and assistant coach Arianna Sabatino.
“Our student athletes put a tremendous amount of effort [and] energy into representing WAC, while simultaneously maintaining incredibly high academic standards,” Reilly said. “Our student athletes are worthy of our support, whether it’s coming to a match in person, watching a livestream broadcast, or offering some financial support during Shore Strong.”
At the end of Shore Strong, WC athletics raised $128,058 with 935 donors. Donations can still be made to WC athletics at https://www.washcoll.edu/giving/shore-strong.php.
Elm Archive Photo
Photo Caption: The athletics department just wrapped up its biggest fundraiser of the year.