Play4Mary is when teams play for The Mary Ruchalski foundation. This was founded by the family of Mary Ruchalski, a friend and teammate of mine and many others from Rockville Centre, who passed away in 2018 from a rare pediatric cancer.
The foundation helps other children and their families who are battling cancer. Mary was an athlete so the Play4Mary games are a fundraiser for the foundation and a way to keep Mary’s kind spirit alive.
We had shirts made which both schools wore and purchased prior to the game , a bake sale, and we sold gold bows and lanterns in honor of pediatric cancer awareness month. I was photographed with Mrs, Ruchalski separately for donating half of my earnings from my summer job.
I am a soccer trainer for the youth of my community and donated $300 in addition to the foundation. This Play4Mary event raised about $1400. It’s a great day for all.
_ Information shared by Julianna Bivona
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