14th Annual Kicks for Cancer

2021

Kicks for Cancer 

Kicks for Cancer began at Hauppauge High school in 2008 as a way to honor and support Courtney Tomkin, a junior that was diagnosed with brain cancer the previous spring. 

The following was written by Courtney’s father: That fall, she ran out onto the field facing an uphill battle. You wouldn’t have guessed by the big smile on her face as she greeted her teammates in the middle of the field. It was the day her friends and this community stood by her side and developed “Kicks for Cancer”. This community was a place she loved to call her home. “Kicks for Cancer” meant the world to Courtney and to us her family. Courtney was brave and courageous beyond her years and she knew that her time here was going to be cut short. We are all put to Earth for our lifetime for however many years it is. For Courtney it was a life that had hardly begun, but that’s not how she described it. For Courtney it “was 17 great years”. Our daughter, your sister, your friend, your student, taught us to look at the world through better eyes, to take time to enjoy life’s simple joys. She set about creating special and memorable moments. She made every day count. “Kick’s for Cancer” allowed her to see just how much love she was going to take with her. Courtney’s life ended on December 13th, 2008 but she left us a lifetime of fond moments, precious memories and so much love. Our life as a family will be forever changed and our hearts broken for having lost a daughter and a sister as special as Courtney. We take pride in knowing however that her life meant something to all of you who share in this event. So we wish to thank you for making this event in honor of Courtney, and for loving her and missing her as much as we do. Courtney was so proud of the Hauppauge Girls Varsity Soccer Team. Their love, generosity and friendship were unbelievable and meant the world to her. We hope that Kicks for Cancer continues to grow, that the proceeds will benefit other children suffering the terrible tragedy of Cancer, and that someday this charitable event will help in finding a cure. 

This event has become incredibly successful and many teams in our association have signed on to raise money for various cancer organizations such as The Making Headway Foundation, The American Cancer Society, The Dezy Strong Foundation, Kids Need More, Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Islip Breast Cancer Coalition, CancerCare, Friends of Karen, Angels without Faces and many more including local families that may be suffering with a loss or diagnosis of cancer.

What You and Your Team Need to Do: 

• Commit to raise at least $500 for your Varsity team to participate (+$250 for each additional team that wants to jump on board – JV, MS, Boys, etc.) 
• Raise the money however your team wants (per athlete donation, car wash, sell shirts, etc.) – there is a list of ideas attached. 
• Pick a home game in October to host your Kicks for Cancer game & wear your #’d shirts during your game. 
• Bring a check – made payable to SCGSCA – for the amount your team raised by the Oct. awards meeting. **PLEASE – NO CASH** 

Team t-shirts will be made over the summer and distributed at a determined time and location…please make every effort to pick these up when scheduled! 

If you want to get involved and join this great cause…I’m here to help with ideas on how to raise money. 

Would you like your team to get involved? Please contact Jesseca Kulesa (Hauppauge) via email at kulesaj@hauppauge.k12.ny.us or jesseca.kulesa@yahoo.com

SCGSCA 

Kicks for Cancer 

2019 

Last season 44 schools in Suffolk County participated in Kicks for Cancer: 

Amityville* Bay Shore Bellport Brentwood Centereach Center Moriches* Commack* Comsewogue* Connetquot Copiague Deer Park* East Hampton Eastport-SM* Elwood-JG Hampton Bays* Harborfields* Hauppauge* Hills East Hills West Huntington Islip Kings Park* Lindenhurst Longwood* Miller Place Mt. Sinai* Newfield North Babylon* Pat-Med* Pierson Port Jefferson Rocky Point* Sachem North Shoreham-WR Smithtown East* Smithtown West Smithtown Christian*Southampton Stony Brook* Walt Whitman* Ward Melville* West Babylon Westhampton William Floyd* Northport* 

*Indicates teams that raised more than the minimum requirement 

Congratulations to Hauppauge – raising over $32,000, Deer Park ($8049) & Harborfields ($6463) for really going above and beyond! We had five schools raise over $2000 – Commack, Kings Park, Comsewogue, Mt. Sinai and Pat-Med…incredible! 

We donated over $70,000 to various cancer organizations and families through what was collected during Kicks for Cancer last season. 

If you have participated in the past, I hope you continue! It is such a worthwhile experience for our girls to participate in. 

Thank you so much!

FUNDRAISING IDEAS FROM SCGSCA COACHES: 

• Apparel Sales, Raffles, Boosters, Food, Bouncers, Corporate Sponsors 
• Sell team items, seek donations, sell tickets to get in, have a pink day at school (pink out) ● Basket raffles & 50 50 raffles 
• I think the girls did a bunch of bake sales, even one they called “black market bake sale” which they somehow did on the sly in the school. Also sold some stuff at the game. 
• Selling Pink soccer t-shirts 
• Carwash & Youth clinic 
• Parents have made the donation for the team in years past. 
• Penalty kick donation competition 
• Moe’s Grill gave us a percentage of their intake for a particular evening. 
• Purchased popcorn maker and students sell popcorn for $1 during lunch periods. ● Sell nuts & candy 
• We sell T- shirts , baked goods , face painting , carnival themes games 
• Bake sales, car wash, working as a team for the Southampton Hospital triathlon, then donating the money to Kicks for cancer. 
• Sold hair bows and ties at the local soccer club fields, bake sales and 50/50 raffles at home soccer games. 
• Car washes, sold pink socks for October 
• Harborfields main fundraiser is a raffle. We ask parents, teachers, and local businesses to donate prizes. Every V, JV, and MS player is asked to sell a minimum of 10 $5 tickets. We also run a few bake sales. 
• Bake Sales, comedy show, Applebee’s flapjack breakfast 
• We have run 50/50 raffles, had pizza sales, and solicited donations from students, faculty, staff, friends and family. 
• Selling long-sleeve t-shirts (basic, gender neutral)
• Football boxes (will be doing for the 2015 season) 
• We sell cookie dough. 
• Concessions, Lindy Soccer Gear, 50/50, 
• We have sold bracelets, t-shirts, socks 
• Chinese Auctions 
• Had the Babylon Breast Cancer Coalition attend home games and set up tables with information and merchandise 
• Car wash, bake sale, raffles, crowd donations 
• Bake sales at school and during homecoming 
• We sell T-shirts with our team acronym DPGVS across the front with the cancer ribbon turned slightly to represent the letter ‘P’. 
• Car wash, bake sales, working at Southampton Hospital Triathlon then donating money earned to kicks for cancer. 
• Pancake Breakfast, Raffle baskets, Sold Soccer balls with sayings or names on it and posted them in the school. 
• Sold boosters and made posters. 
• In the past we have ordered red and black (school colors) rubber bracelets, similar to the old ‘live strong’ bracelets, and each girl sold 5 of them. The bracelets had ‘Hills East Against Cancer’ engraved over a red and black pattern. They sold well and we made good money. 
• The past two years we have sold pink paper soccer balls in the hallway and hung the soccer balls up as people bought them. Each person who purchased a ball made a minimum donation, and wrote their name in the ball. Clubs and other sports teams also donated. This was also an easy way for us to raise the money. ” 
• We do coaches vs. cancer and sell the pin ups cards and we sell baked goods and drinks the day of the game. 
• Car Washes and bake sales. 
• Bake sale and selling t-shirts and donations

**FOR SUBMISSION TO SCHOOLS OR BOOSTER CLUB TO HAVE CHECK WRITTEN**

SCGSCA Teams 

• Commit to raising at least $500 for your Varsity team to participate (+$250 for each additional team that wants to jump on board – JV, MS, Boys, etc.) 
• Raise the money however your team wants (per athlete donation, car wash, sell shirts, etc.) 
• Bring a check – made payable to SCGSCA – for the amount your team raised by the Oct. awards meeting. **PLEASE – NO CASH** 

School Name: 

Number of Teams: 

Amount Donating: 

Jesseca Kulesa 

SCGSCA Treasurer