Pirate Pete Trivia Night Supports Ray Mills Fund
Pirate Pete Trivia Night returns to Palatine High School on April 13 to support the Ray Mills Fund. The fund is named after a former Palatine High School teacher and counselor who regularly went out of his way to help students in need. The fund, established in Mills' honor, has fulfilled a wide range of student needs at Palatine High School including school and project supplies, sports physicals for athletes, nutritious snacks, graduation gown rental fees, and so much more.
To support this fund, Pirate Pete Trivia Night will be held on Friday, April 13th starting at 7:00pm in the Palatine High School cafeteria, 1111 N. Rohlwing Road. Tables are $50 for a team of up to eight players, and all are welcome to participate including teachers, students, and community members. Registration can be completed online at www.phs.d211.org. In addition to the trivia game, the evening includes raffles, a 50/50 drawing, pizza, soda, and bake sale. FREE child care will be offered in the PHS Pirate Preschool room, supervised by student volunteers from the PHS National Honor Society and a Palatine teacher. Chris Smith will serve as the Master of Ceremonies for the fundraiser.
This year will have two divisions, each with a 1st place prize of $200, a 2nd place prize of $100, and a 3rd place prize of $50. The divisions will be separated along age lines. If at least half of the team is comprised of high school aged players (or younger), the team qualifies for the Scarlet division. No Scarlet team can have more adults than high school or younger players. The Grey division is available to teams with larger numbers of adults.
According to the Ray Mills Fund Chairman, Chemistry teacher Nicki O'Keefe, "In tough times like these we have seen an increased need and we are hopeful that this event will help us replenish the fund and continue to provide support to our students in need."
Ray Mills started at Palatine High School in 1946 and worked at the school as a teacher, counselor and eventually the director of guidance at the school until his retirement in 1976. When Mills passed away in 1983, the Ray Mills Fund was established and administered by the PHS Very Interested Parents (VIP) Club, now the PHS Pirate Boosters. At the time the fund was established, PHS Principal Leonard Newendorp was quoted in a Chicago Tribune article, explaining that Mills started a loan fund in the guidance office for "kids who forgot their lunch money, a tuxedo that quietly appeared when a student needed one for the prom" and many other student needs. This quiet generosity lives on through the fund, helping fulfill the needs of many students at Palatine High School and is a fitting tribute to the Ray Mills legacy.