December 23, 2013 at 12:58 p.m.
High school sports teams support Kindness for Kids
Toy drives held by RHS boys' hockey, boys' basketball squads
High school sports teams support Kindness for Kids
By Kayla Breese-
Last week the Rhinelander High School's boys' hockey and basketball teams completed donation drives for Kindness for Kids, an organization that collects donated toys and distributes them to needy children.
"It's right around Christmas. You've got that and with this being the game against Nate, so it's a good game for (the toy drive)," RHS boys' basketball coach Derek Lemmens said in anticipation of last Friday's contest against his brother Nate's Wausau West Warriors. "When you have a good cause, it's nice for us to do this together. I think the crowd will be big, so hopefully we can get some good donations and make Christmas a little better for some families."
The boys' hockey team was equally eager to participate in the Kindness for Kids toy drive.
"Every year the boys' hockey team is the first one to go to (head coach) M.J. Laggis and say 'Are we going to do the toy drive again this year? What do we need to do?' They have done a great job with collecting toys," said Alan Newman of Kindness for Kids.
Laggis said the hockey team enjoys helping Kindness for Kids, an organization that has been around for 19 years.
"It's a great event and it's good to help disadvantaged people that need that help - disadvantaged families, economically," he said. "It's a great thing to do and good for the community."
Laggis said he uses the drive to teach his players a valuable lesson about investing in their community.
"I want them to see a connectedness to the community," he said. "I want them to see that their actions can immediately impact people in their own community. That's how you build communities, by people looking out for each other and helping each other out and doing the right thing. When you get involved in the community and help out, I believe, you're more likely to come back and live in this community and be involved in it and make it a better place. I think it's a great opportunity to do that."
This is the third year that the hockey team and the Rhinelander Ice Association have run a toy drive.
Kindness for Kids cofounder Bob Dionne said the organization is very thankful to the community and the two athletic teams for their help and donations.
"It's just the generosity of the community. It's coming from their heart and through their players and the fans that come and we are just lucky enough to be the recipients of those toys to give back out," he said.
For more information about the toy drive, contact Alan Newman at (715) 482-0825.
River News sports editor Jeremy Mayo and feature writer Andy Hildebrand contributed to this report.
Comments:
You must login to comment.