“Live for what matters” are the words Megan Goldberg shares from her friend Jenna Beno’s quotes.
Goldberg is spreading the message while organizing the Lady Wolves Basketball Program’s second annual Hoops for Troops set for February 13, 2015 – which is held in honor of Beno, a 2006 Clarkston High School graduate who passed away October 2012 from injuries she sustained in Iraq.
The 2015 event raises funds for Operation Second Chance, which is one of the organization which helped Beno.
Beno was injured in November 2009 in Iraq and spent 2 1/2 years at Walter Reed Medical Hospital. It was there she met Cindy McGraw, the founder of Operation Second Chance, and a special friendship and bond was formed.
Beno attended many of the OSC events such as golf outings, fishing trips, dinners out and a retreat to Montana which changed her life. She began to heal emotionally and physically before she passed away.
Operation Second Chance is a non-profit organization which changes lives by helping heroes move on with dignity and love. They provide emergency financial assistance for a wide range of needs from rent and utility payments to travel and groceries to name a few.
OSC provides retreats and day trips to our veterans to get them out of the hospital atmostphere. They also provide caregiver spa days, family bowling and more.
The community rallied behind the first annual Hoops for Troops with donating $5,000 in honor of Beno who was part of the basketball family not just as a player but a manager, too.
“It was a shock,” Goldberg reflected on the donations. “I was very happy, surprised and grateful from the community coming together.”
She added it wasn’t just the Clarkston community but the entire basketball community from the referees to North Farmington’s players, coaches, families and friends supporting the Lady Raiders.
“Their parents and their fans at the game were putting money in for the raffle,” she said. “It’s not about Clarkston – it’s about the troops.”
Her hope for the 2015 Hoops for Troops is to raise as much as they possibly can for Operation Second Chance.
“I don’t have a number goal,” Goldberg added. “It puts too much pressure on everybody.”
The first step for the 2015 Hoops for Troops is sponsorships for the event and to get the community involved.
Sponsorships available include: Buzzer Beater for a donation of $150 or more the business name is on all promotional materials including on the back of the Hoops for Troops T-shirts, event program and event flyer, mention at halftime of the game and in Letter to the Editor in The Clarkston News.
Sponsorships are due January 14, 2015.
For more information or to become a Hoops for Troops sponsor, email Goldberg at HoopsfortheTroops@gmail.com or call 248-496-5226.