In this week’s edition of This Hits Different, Shelby Cassesse tells the story of Thomas Jefferson soccer players, who raised over $82,000 for Leukemia research.
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TJ soccer players shatter expectations in cancer fundraiser
Traditions are common in team sports, with different rituals passed down from class to class. On the Thomas Jefferson girls soccer team, there's a tradition that makes a big impact.
Juniors Emma Martinis and Olivia Supp were nominated for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Student of the Year Program.
“Many soccer girls have done this, and last year one of the captains asked me and Emma if we wanted to participate,” said Supp.
Their goal? Raise $30,000 in just two months. Supp explains, even that was a lofty goal.
“We kind of heard the $20,000 was the overall type of goal for all of the teams to have,” she said. “When we heard that, we were like ‘heck no, this is nuts, but we’ll try anyways, we’ll try our best.’”
For these two girls, it was more personal than just fundraising, they befriended Scarlett, a fourth grader at Jefferson Hills Intermediate School who was diagnosed with Leukemia last fall.
The local community has rallied around her, including Supp and Martinis, who says they spend time with her and chat with her whenever they can.
“It also brought us closer to her,” she said. “She did have leukemia and is still battling it right now. We keep in touch with her. She’s pretty much our ‘why’ for why we’re dong this campaign.”
The girls hit the ground running...quite literally. Spending weekends going from business to business asking for help. On top of school, athletics, friends and family, Supp says this was a full-time job.
“Our longest day out in the City of Pittsburgh was probably nine hours of running in and out of businesses, shaking hands constantly, little small talk and just sealing the deal with them,” she explained.
It was that time spent, plus commitment from the community that paid off most. Supp and Martinis raised over $82,000, more than doubling their goal. Much like her team on the field, Martinis says it was a true group effort.
“I’m just really proud of us and all the work we did and all the help we got, too,” she said. “Because our $82,000 all came from the community. We didn’t have any corporate sponsors giving us just a big check. So we did work for every dollar we got. It was just really rewarding to see all the work we put into it.”
Though the fundraising total may have been a surprise to the girls, it wasn't so much for their head coach Sean Richter.
“It’s huge, it’s a huge number, it’s incredible,” he said. “But, at the same time, I’m not shocked at all.
This process, which has become a team tradition for TJ girls soccer is one to be proud of for Coach Richter, and it hits close to home. His own daughter was diagnosed with Leukemia when she was just three years old.
“She’s now a sophomore, but she had Leukemia,” he said. “So I know firsthand what families go through and what it’s like to have people around you to just rally and be there, and have a support system.
“So I’m not surprised that they killed it. It’s just how they approached it. They come from good familiar and good people. They’re good young people who will aspire and motivate others.”
And for Supp and Martinis, the whirwind two months left a lasting impact, in their relationship with the community, with Scarlett and with each other.
“We’re really close with their families now,” Martinis said. “We got to meet so many new people on this journey. I’m happy we got to include them and meet them through this.”
“I just really appreciate everyone who helped us out,” Supp added. “There’s so many people, it would probably take hours to name everyone. I wouldn’t event be able to name everyone. It was just awesome.”