Vanderhoof’s elementary ultimate players ringed in close to $1,200 for spinal cord research in B.C this fall.
On Sept. 30, over 200 students from grades 4 to 6 in Vanderhoof battled through dry hay and sunny skies at the 18th ICORD Ultimate Frisbee tournament on W. L. McLeod Elementary.
“Some years we have Fort Fraser and Fraser Lake students, but this year we only had in-town teams, and we still raised the same amount of money, which is fantastic,” said Glen Antoski, who founded the tournament with teachers Kim Worthington and Bill Gridley.
About $20,000 have been contributed so far from the annual event to UBC’s International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries, a research centre focused on spinal cord injury.
Supported by donations from local businesses and volunteer hours from Nechako Valley Secondary students, the event raised funds through tournament entry fees and concession.
This year, the tournament date coincided with Orange Shirt Day: the official day set to recognize the harm the residential school system did to children’s sense of self-esteem and well-being. W. L. McLeod players wore an orange ribbon in recognition of the day.
Ultimate frisbee was also the focus of physical education classes for students in preparation for the annual tournament.