Averett’s Men’s Wrestling Team Day of Giving Inspires Generosity and Some Hijinx!
The Cougars Men’s Wrestling Team participated in the 24 hour Day of Giving marathon on Tuesday, March 19th.This special event occurs every spring and rallies students, alumni, faculty, staff and friends of the university to unite in support of the wrestling team. This year, the Cougars set a steep goal of $17,000 with the hope of purchasing a room divider.
“This year we collaborated with the mens and womens basketball team to purchase a room divider. This will not only help with privacy, but also cuts out some distractions,” said Head Coach Blake Roulo. “Unfortunately, we didn’t meet our $17k goal, but we came close with $11,315.69. The generosity of our donors shows what a deep commitment they have to our program.”
To make things fun and to get everyone excited, Coach Roulo once again took to social media to create some craziness. He pledged for every $2,000 raised he would have a body part waxed live on social media. Last year, he was slapped by a different member of the wrestling team for every $1,000 raised. Throughout the day, Roulo provided updates and once milestones were achieved Roulo got waxed.“ We’ve found that our folks really like to see me do something crazy”. In the end Roulo had his arms, beard, mustache and sideburns removed. While Roulo was keeping up with the totals coming in, assistant coaches Sam Braswell, Brandon Woody and Alex Turley sent emails and texts to parents, alumni and friends of the wrestling program. “Everyone has to do their part in trying to raise this money,” said Braswell. “Do I like to call people and ask for money…nah, but we really could really use the divider.”
Coach Roulo said he intends to have the entire wrestling team sign thank you notes that will be mailed to everyone who donated. “It’s important for the boys to show their gratitude to our donors and let them know how much we appreciate their support.”
The collective goal was $25,000. The men’s basketball team raised $1,630 and the women’s team $1,000. This leaves the group short by over $11,000. If you would like to help these student athletes reach their goal it’s not too late. Visit Averett.edu and select the Giving tab or reach out to Coach Roulo, [email protected] for more information on how to donate.
