A new father’s club at Prendergast School is trying to raise enough money to build a new playground.
Their first fundraiser: A dodgeball tournament next month.
The dodgeball tournament will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on June 4 at the Ansonia High School gymnasium.
(Editor’s note: there won’t be wrenches thrown at the tournament See video.)
Assistant Principal Joseph Apicella told the Board of Education about the plans last week.
“We’re not asking the board for any financial support for this,” Apicella said. “The dads plan to do all the fundraising.”
The group formed last month, after a local father asked the school how he could get more involved.
The father, Sal Hanaif, asked if he could start a dad’s club at the school, to bring more fathers into the building and get them more involved in their children’s education.
The first meeting was held in April, and the fathers decided to work together to raise money for a project, Apicella said.
They found instant inspiration by looking outside at the school’s small residential-type swing set.
With four swings and a slide, it’s not anywhere big enough to handle the number of students who play outside during breaks, Apicella told the Board of Education.
Anywhere from 100 to 125 students use the playground during recess.
“The slide line is long,” he said.
So the dads decided to raise some money and purchase a bigger playground.
They also want to raise money for things like smart boards for the school.
The dodgeball tournament seeks to raise money through corporate sponsors and team entry fees.
The different levels of sponsorship are:
- $300 — entry fee for a team
- $500 — name appears in program and on a banner.
- $1,000 — name appears in program, banner and T‑shirt, and team entry fee waived.
- $3,000 — Tournament named after your company, and name appears on program, T‑shirt and banner. Entry fee for team also waived.
For more information, contact Apicella at Prendergast School at (203) 736‑5080.
