Saltillo Sr. Class of 2021 Raising $ for Summer BasketBall

L to R: Ally Smith, Allie Lane, Julianna Giles, Anna Reeder, Maddy Smith, Brittney Peeples, (bottom) Chandler Bain, Paisley Kastner, and Jocelyn Ochoa

On Friday May 1, 2020, the girls of Saltillo Class of 2021 conducted a fundraiser at the Come and Eat Cafe located just down the road from the Saltillo school community at Weaver, Texas. From 2-8pm on the first day of ‘re-opening’ for the cafe, business was brisk at times and the girls had plenty to do. While two served as greeters at the door, the rest pitched in to take orders, refill glasses, bus tables and in general, just provide a healthy dose of optimistic hospitality to those who came in to eat. All sported their blue Saltillo school T-shirts by way of uniform. According to Susan Smith, Saltillo Booster Club Co-ordinator and who is also Cafeteria Director at Saltillo ISD, the funds raised from the cafe fundraiser will go toward the Summer Basketball Tournament Series which the team plans participate in starting in June. “Each tournament we enter has entry fees, and there are travel and overnight expenses, meals, etc. which the girls work hard to save for. Working together as a team is more than just on the basketball court; these girls are a team every day at school, and with their Senior year starting this Fall, they are all in to make it the best it can be! They want to start school in August as Tournament Champions!” Mrs. Smith is also the mom of twin teammates Maddy and Allie Smith. Additionally, Allie is a part-time employee of the Come and Eat Cafe. According to Maddy, “the fundraiser we are doing allows an opportunity to develop greater teamwork that carries over onto the court during practice and games”.

The Saltillo Summer Basketball League 2020/2021

Other teammates chimed in to say, “helping customers at the cafe helps us gain social skills that some of us might not have a chance to learn”, and “we are gaining experience for life, learning new things and expanding our horizons”. 2020 graduate Jocelyn Ochoa was present to help out, and she stated, “when we interact with people while representing our school, like asking for donations for the summer basketball program, we develop new kinds of skills. And then, when we attend tournaments in other towns and states, we get exposed to different levels of sports talent which helps build our team”.

Author: Enola Gay

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