Schaumburg, Conant Girls Water Polo Raises $4100 for American Cancer Society

The Schaumburg and Conant High School Girls Water Polo teams raised more than $4,000 for the American Cancer Society's Relay For Life of Schaumburg/Hoffman Estates in their inaugural charity fundraiser game on Thursday, April 19.

“I'm just so proud of everyone who was involved,” said Schaumburg senior and captain Casey Houts. “There are so many great causes out there, but cancer has affected all of us, so it was a great choice that everyone rallied behind.”

Each team had a fundraising goal of $500. Together, the teams raised $4,100.60 by selling t-shirts, collecting donations from their families, friends, and neighbors, and from the bake sale that took place at the game.

“The girls on both teams exceeded our wildest expectations—they raised four times what we asked of them,” Schaumburg head coach Beth Donatucci said. “These girls step up in every aspect of their lives, and this fundraiser is just one more example of that.”

Conant head coach Justin Bickus offered to shave his hair in a mohawk if his girls raised $40 each. On game day, he sported his new look.

“I knew it was a good cause and wanted to have some fun with it and give some extra fun motivation,” Bickus said. “I knew that the girls were really motivated to hit the amount, what I was impressed by was how many went well beyond that goal without any incentive.”

The Schaumburg pool was packed with fans there to support their teams and the cause.

“I am proud to say that in this event the focus was much greater than the traditional Conant rivalry,” Schaumburg Principal Timothy Little said. “There were two competing teams working towards one common goal. In my opinion, that is a ‘win-win' for our school and community.”

The fundraiser game was the idea of Schaumburg captains Houts and junior Ashley Johnson, who wanted to increase the visibility of their sport by supporting the community.

“We were able to raise $4000 in our first event when we only thought we would raise $1000,” Johnson said. “Next year I want to get more people involved to raise even more!”