The Goochland Bulldogs brought a state football championship to the county, now they can use the county’s help in getting a memento they can wear the rest of their lives.
They need help raising money to get their championship rings. Head coach Joe Fowler said the cost is $17,000, but that is for a lot of rings – more than 60 players, eight coaches, and the team’s trainers.
The fundraising challenge, called “1st Seed Goochland,” will be made easier by an anonymous donor who lives in the county who has offered a $7,000 matching grant. He will match contributions dollar-for-dollar up to $7,000. Goochland Educational Foundation President Elizabeth Nelson-Lyda said the deadline the matching grant is March 31.
Nelson-Lyda, mother of Goochland football player Kevin Lyda, said money is needed for more than rings.
“Boosters needs a lot of money right now,” Nelson-Lyda said. “There’s football, but then Boosters, it takes care of everything. I don’t know if people really realize that in Goochland. Anything that has to do with athletics, the wraps, the getting the fields ready, all of those costs are not absorbed by Goochland County Public Schools. That is absorbed by Boosters.”
This past Sunday, 250 Sports Grill held a Goochland Bulldogs Spirit Night in which 15 percent of the proceeds was contributed to the fundraising effort. Several more are planned: on Feb. 17 and 24 and on March 3, 10, and 24. Michelle Nixon and Drive will hold a benefit concert in March. Other fundraising events are planned.
But citizens do not have to wait for one of these events to chip in. Contributions can be sent to Goochland County Public Schools, the Goochland Athletic Boosters, or the Goochland Educational Foundation.
For more information, contact:
Goochland Athletic Boosters, Inc.
P.O. Box 984
Goochland, Virginia 23063
