Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

high school football:

Valley football seeks donations to replace old field gear

Valley HS football equipment

Courtesy

The Valley High football program has established a GoFundMe account to raise $20,000 for equipment upgrades. This five-man blocking sled, which is missing bolts, is among the pieces of equipment slated for replacement.

If George Baker needed something new for his high school football program, he’d make a call to a parent for a donation. And there was always a nearby business, or two, willing to help.

He could also host a fundraiser in the community, knowing residents frequently waited in long lines on game day to get into the stadium to support his team and wouldn’t hesitate spending a few dollars for a candy bar or car wash.

That was when he was the coach at Centennial, which is located in an upper-middle class neighborhood of northwest Las Vegas. Baker doesn’t have that luxury anymore.

Now the second-year coach at Valley High, a Title 1 school with limited resources in central Las Vegas, Baker has become creative in his fundraising efforts. He took to social media this week trying to contact alumni to make donations through a GoFundMe account online.

Baker aims to raise $20,000 to replace field equipment, some of which was purchased in the 1990s, and has the wear and tear to prove it. Valley has been around for more than 50 years and used to be one of the area’s more upscale schools, but has fallen on tough times in the decline of the neighborhood.

Baker knows there are still many residents who care about Valley and are eager to give back.

“We are working hard to give the boys the best opportunity and the best equipment,” Baker said.

Click to enlarge photo

Out-dated Valley High football equipment.

One blocking pad is ripped and the padding needs to be reinserted before use. Another pad is dated from 1992. And the sleds are old and rusty, and most important, are missing bolts. A new sled costs $8,000 to $10,000.

“For us, that’s a tough number to (fundraise) toward,” he said.

It’s no surprise that Valley hasn’t won a game since 2013 and was outscored 471-70 last season. New gear might not bring immediate victories, but it will help in Baker’s quest of transforming the program.

“It will give the kids something to be excited about,” he said. “It’s all about teaching the proper way to play. Kids aren’t excited to hit 30-year-old sleds.”

All schools, regardless of where they are located, receive money from the Clark County School District for the basics — helmets and shoulder pads, for example — to run a program. Baker, in his first season last year, managed to also get new Under Armour uniforms and to remodel the weight room.

Step by step, he’s determined to makeover the program.

“I knew what I was getting into over here,” Baker said. “It is a process. When I got here last summer, there were more pressing things we had to address right away with grades and getting kids to come to school. We have taken care of that and now it’s time to work on infrastructure and facility.”

Click here for the GoFundMe account

Ray Brewer can be reached at 702-990-2662 or [email protected]. Follow Ray on Twitter at twitter.com/raybrewer21

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