Fire Dept, softball teams make record donation to fight breast cancer
Bob Jones and James Clemens softball teams come together for a cause (Record Photo/Lindsay Vaught)
MADISON- Madison Fire and Rescue Dept. combined with the Bob Jones and James Clemens softball teams and their fans to raise over $5,000 for the Liz Hurley Fund to fight breast cancer.
The teams second meeting of the regular season was Tuesday and the checks were presented after the game, a 9-0 win by James Clemens. The softball teams and their fans raised $1,717.20 selling goodies and donating the gate in their 2 games. The fire dept. raised $4,000 in their campaign which included selling pink tee shirts with the fire dept. logo on them.
Captain Daryl McMeans was at the game to present the check. His daughter Jordan McMeans plays rightfield for James Clemens.
“We design a shirt every year and sell them and all the proceeds go to the Liz Hurley Breast Cancer Fund. This year it just snowballed bigger than ever,” McMeans said. “We printed 500 and those sold out and we printed another 500. We start selling in October through December.”
The shirts were pink this year and that made them especially popular.
McMeans added that Fire Chief Ralph Cobb is a big supporter of the campaign and lets all the firefighters wear the tee shirts during October which is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
“Its important to the girls to understand what they need to be doing at an early age. All the research that goes into it is very important.”
McMeans and all the parents are gearing up for what could be a memorable ending to the season. James Clemens sits at #1 in 7A in the state. The Jets have never made it to Montgomery to the AHSAA Softball Championship Tournament. This year it is May 18-21.
The Jets have locked up the top spot in Area 8 and will host the area tournament later this month. The top two teams will advance to the NW Regional. From there two teams advance to Montgomery.
The Jets won behind the shutout pitching of Emily Jacklin who ran her record to 18-1. Caroline Payne pounded out 3 hits and 2 RBI.
James Clemens Head Softball Coach AJ Daugherty said “I am very proud of both schools for their fundraising efforts for a good cause. This disease affects so many people and our game raises awareness and promotes early detection. It’s a very cool thing to be a part of and it seems to get bigger and better each year.”
