What you have accomplished

[GG121AND2]

A huge thank you goes out to you Hawk fans who accepted CowboyUp's challenge and donated to Wrestling for Life. Monday I ordered 21 pairs of shoes to meet the needs of a middle school in California whose wrestling team is 80% "free lunch" and the Augusta Beat the Streets chapter. Make no mistake - you helped make this happen.

I can't adequately express my gratitude. Just picture a kid walking out on the mat in a new pair of shoes who before had to borrow an old, odd pair - or go without. I hope I speak for those kids and their parents when I say, once more, "thank you".

 

[merr6267]

Thanks for doing this stuff, and also thanks for letting us know that you do it. Some may dislike the PR nature of "look what we did" however it tells the people that this good stuff is actually happening. I don't believe that you say these things publicly to toot your own horn, but rather to inspire others to continue to help these causes.

I help with my HS team in Michigan and we had a dual against a new HS team (old high school, new team) that is also mostly "free lunch" demographics. A few weeks prior to the match, some of our kids rounded up a bunch of shoes and sent them to that school. This was not something I was aware of until we had our banquet.

On multiple occasions after our guy pinned one of them (team score was 84-0), the recipient of the shoes (and the pin) shook hands and said "Thank you for the shoes," with tears of gratitude in his eyes. Our guys came back to the bench with similar tears.

Many learned what it was like to help another, and others learned what it was like to put a name and face with the hand that helped them.

My small story is just a microcosm of the type of work you're doing with these kids with Wrestling for Life. Please keep it up.

Thanks,
Phill

 

[WWDMHawkeye]

Thanks for doing this stuff, and also thanks for letting us know that you do it. Some may dislike the PR nature of "look what we did" however it tells the people that this good stuff is actually happening. I don't believe that you say these things publicly to toot your own horn, but rather to inspire others to continue to help these causes.

I help with my HS team in Michigan and we had a dual against a new HS team (old high school, new team) that is also mostly "free lunch" demographics. A few weeks prior to the match, some of our kids rounded up a bunch of shoes and sent them to that school. This was not something I was aware of until we had our banquet.

On multiple occasions after our guy pinned one of them (team score was 84-0), the recipient of the shoes (and the pin) shook hands and said "Thank you for the shoes," with tears of gratitude in his eyes. Our guys came back to the bench with similar tears.

Many learned what it was like to help another, and others learned what it was like to put a name and face with the hand that helped them.

My small story is just a microcosm of the type of work you're doing with these kids with Wrestling for Life. Please keep it up.

Thanks,
Phill

That's awesome, Phill! Thanks for the story -- very touching stuff.

None of this fundraising stuff on this board, be it for the HWC or for WFL, is about tooting anyone's own horn. It's all about motivating people and helping them understand the difference they can make. If naysayers want to say otherwise, that's their issue, and we don't have time for that kind of baloney. Lots of positive stuff happening around here for kids in need, for the sport, and for the HWC and Iowa wrestling. All good.

 

[GG121AND2]

Thanks for doing this stuff, and also thanks for letting us know that you do it. Some may dislike the PR nature of "look what we did" however it tells the people that this good stuff is actually happening. I don't believe that you say these things publicly to toot your own horn, but rather to inspire others to continue to help these causes.

I help with my HS team in Michigan and we had a dual against a new HS team (old high school, new team) that is also mostly "free lunch" demographics. A few weeks prior to the match, some of our kids rounded up a bunch of shoes and sent them to that school. This was not something I was aware of until we had our banquet.

On multiple occasions after our guy pinned one of them (team score was 84-0), the recipient of the shoes (and the pin) shook hands and said "Thank you for the shoes," with tears of gratitude in his eyes. Our guys came back to the bench with similar tears.

Many learned what it was like to help another, and others learned what it was like to put a name and face with the hand that helped them.

My small story is just a microcosm of the type of work you're doing with these kids with Wrestling for Life. Please keep it up.

Thanks,
Phill

Thank you so much for the kind words. We hear too many stories about kids who have to share shoes or do without. It is inspiring to hear about young people like your team members who value the wrestling experience enough to want to share it with others.