You Make it Happen

As the year winds down, please don’t forget to put the Sports Foundation on your holiday gift and end-of-the-year list. Our programs and events really belong to you. This is your investment in the community and its youth. The Sports Foundation board of directors has resolved to bring more benefit to your membership as you will see in this newsletter. However, this is really about giving of ourselves at this special time of the year so that others may benefit from the opportunities that the Sports Foundation affords to the youth and citizens of San Antonio. Thanks so much for helping in 2005.

We would love to also be on your 2006 New Year's resolution list. The 13th annual San Antonio Sports Hall of Fame Tribute will be held on Friday, February 17. Join us and see the Alamodome once again converted into the “Best Sports Gala and Best Silent and Live Auction in San Antonio.” Buy tables now and get priority seating. Individual tickets are still $100 until December 31, after which time they will be $125. You can also make a difference by donating a silent or live auction item. Items on our wish list include: trips, jewelry, dinners, sports memorabilia and those once-in-a-lifetime experiences! We aren’t stopping there…let us know how you can help. Feel free to contact Liz Fritz at (210) 692-3500 and we will help you help us!

Have a great holiday season and see you at the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship on December 15 and 17!



Dr. Susan Blackwood
Executive Director

Sports Foundation Announces Exciting Donor Benefits

We know you give because you want to help the Sports Foundation change children’s lives through our sports and fitness programs and bring premier amateur athletic events to San Antonio. However, as a special “thank you” from the Sports Foundation’s membership committee, we are offering two new incentives to those who join or renew their Sports Foundation individual or corporate membership now.

The Sports Foundation is partnering with the prestigious Plaza Club to offer great incentives to donors who join the Sports Foundation at a level of $500 and above.

Some of the benefits include more than $1000 in free dining at the Plaza Club and a waiver of the initiation fee for Plaza Club membership.

Sports Foundation donors at every level now have the opportunity to accumulate priority bonus points towards the possible purchase of 2008 NCAA Final Four tickets at face value.

Click here to learn more about both of these exciting new donor benefits and others and join the team that makes things happen!

Katrina Emergency Act Aids Motivates Year-End Giving

The recently-enacted Katrina Emergency Tax Relief Act of 2005 (KETRA) includes some important -- but temporary -- provisions regarding charitable contributions. KETRA suspends limitations on the deductibility of certain charitable contributions through December 31, 2005. For individuals, all cash contributions (not just Katrina-related) are fully deductible up to 100% of the individual's adjusted gross income. For corporations, the relief is more restricted and only applies to cash contributions made to Katrina-related relief efforts.

For KETRA, the bottom line is:

• Donors can deduct up to 100% of Adjusted Gross Income (AGI), IF ...
• Gifts are in cash
• Gifts are made before December 31, 2005
• Gifts are made to a public charity (501(c)3) (Includes Sports Foundation, but excludes private foundations, donor advised funds, property such as stock or land, or segregated funds where the donor retains advisory privileges with respect to distributions or investments; also excludes charitable remainder trusts or pooled income funds ... but may include charitable gift annuities if charity does not segregate funds by donor)

We encourage you to speak with your tax advisor to determine how this one-time opportunity might benefit you and your giving plans to San Antonio Sports Foundation this year.

Go!Kids Get Ready to Celebrate

Thousands of elementary students will cross the finish line at the Valero Go!Kids Challenge™ Subway Victory Lap Celebration at the Alamodome this Sunday, December 4 from 12 noon until 4:00 p.m. This citywide celebration is for children from more than 260 area elementary schools who have spent the last 11 weeks walking one-half mile a day to complete a 26-mile marathon.

They will be awarded their finishers’ medals and t-shirts and join their friends, families and teachers in a celebratory walk on the floor of the Alamodome. Participants will also enjoy an interactive health and fitness fair staged by event sponsors and the San Antonio Sports Foundation.

Designed by the San Antonio Sports Foundation to motivate children to make exercise a fun, healthy habit, the Valero Go!Kids Challenge is a 11-week walking program that involves 165,000 children in grades K-5 from every school district in San Antonio, Boerne and New Braunfels.

For more information about the Valero Go!Kids Challenge Subway Victory Lap Celebration, contact the San Antonio Sports Foundation at (210) 820-2101 or visit www.gokidschallenge.com.

NCAA Volleyball Tournament Time

The Division I Women’s Volleyball Committee met last Sunday to determine the bracket for 64 teams that will be competing in the 2005 NCAA tournament. Although there were no major surprises coming out of Selection Sunday as the top four seeds were assigned to teams that have been atop the polls all season, the biggest surprise of the year came the night before. Number one seed and top ranked Nebraska lost its first match of the season to the UT Lady Longhorns in a five-set thriller, which was just a prelude to what fans can expect to see over the next three weekends of competition. Rounding out the other three top seeds are Penn State (2), Washington (3) and Arizona (4).

Click here for the official tournament bracket. Good luck to all 64 squads on their Road to San Antonio™!

Volunteer Orientation

True to form, our loyal volunteers, along with some new faces, have come through again to fill all required shifts and responsibilities that will make the 2005 Championship a success! A required volunteer orientation is scheduled for Thursday, December 8 at the UTSA Downtown Campus, Buena Vista Building, Room 1.328. Registration will begin at 6:00 p.m. and the general assembly starts promptly at 6:30 p.m. Volunteers will receive their final shift schedules, instructions and uniforms for the Championship. For additional information regarding orientation, please call 210-820-2191.

Thank you in advance to all volunteers for your upcoming efforts!

Last Chance for Tickets – Beat the Regional Rush!

The San Antonio Local Organizing Committee anticipates a large request for remaining tickets after the Regional Finals, December 10, when the final four teams are determined. Don’t wait another day to secure your tickets to the Championship before it is sold out! Call Jenny Carnes at 210-820-2104 or download an order form here for your $45 all-session tickets and FREE commemorative t-shirts.

Party Opportunity for Volleyball Fans

Sports Foundation board member Rick Smith of Chapman Schewe Benefits Consulting is hosting a private party in an Alamodome suite during the Volleyball Championship and you’re invited! For only $65 per person, you’ll enjoy great seats, great food and beverages, a free t-shirt and great company. Tickets include both the semifinal matches on Dec. 15 and the championship game on Dec. 17. Bring your friends and family! Call 820-2104 to book your spot today.

SASF Golf Classic Teams Filling Fast

Teams are selling fast for the 2005 Sports Foundation Golf Classic “Holiday Edition”, which takes place Monday, December 12 at the Dominion Country Club. The winning team will score a foursome in the 2006 SBC Championship Pro-Am and there are four hole-in-one chances at winning a vehicle. Other great prizes will be awarded for 2nd, 3rd and 4th place teams, as well as for the longest drive and closest to the hole.

We thank all of our tournament sponsors and encourage you to join them by sponsoring a team or purchasing an individual player slot to help support the Sports Foundation’s Dreams for Youth and Go!Kids Challenge™ youth initiatives, today!

Gold Sponsor – Cox Smith Matthews, Inc.

Silver Sponsors – Coca Cola Bottling Company, Clear Channel Broadcasting, News 4 WOAI, SBC Communications, Whataburger, Inc.

Bronze Sponsors – BudCo Ltd, Capstone Corporation, City of Live Oak Economic Development, Ernst & Young, George Becknell, Sr., H-E-B, IKON Office Solutions, Merrill Lynch, Mike Trevino, Security Service Federal Credit Union, Sterling Foods, Inc., Southwest Business Corporations, The Gambrinus Company, Valero Energy Corporation

Hole-in-one Sponsors -- Gillman Honda, Gunn Honda, Freedom Chevrolet, Gunn Acura

Just click here to enter as a team or call 210-820-2127.

2006 Hall of Fame Tribute

Tickets for the 2006 San Antonio Sports Hall of Fame Tribute are now on sale. Just click here or call 210-820-2100 to reserve your seats today.

The floor of the Alamodome will be transformed into a beautiful setting for the Tribute on Friday, February 17, as we honor the Hall of Fame Class of 2006. NBA Executive Bob Bass, NBA great Sean Elliott, rodeo pioneer Mary Nan West, Oklahoma quarterback Thomas Lott, baseball great Pinkey Whitney, and former Toronto Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston will all be inducted.

Also being recognized are the San Antonio Express-News Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year as well as the Sports Foundation’s own Janet Holliday, who will receive the National Council of Youth Sports 2005 Hershey STRIVE award as Volunteer of the Year.

Tables to this year’s event can be purchased for $1500, $2500, and $5000. Individual tickets are also available for $100 each if purchased before December 31, 2005. On January 1, 2006 the price for individual tickets goes up to $125. Click here to register online or call 210-820-2109.

New Orleans Saints Ticket Special

The New Orleans Saints will take on the Detroit Lions in the Alamodome on the afternoon of Saturday, Dec. 24. A special Christmas Eve ticket offer is being made available to friends of the Sports Foundation. Click here to see how you can save 50% on field level corner seating.

Before you open your Christmas presents, enjoy a great NFL holiday outing with your family at a great price! For more information contact matar@saints.nfl.com or call 210-208-9500 x 383.

CODP Fencers Excel at National Tournament

Congratulations to the following Sports Foundation Community Olympic Development Program fencers from San Antonio who placed at the North American Cup Youth “B” Youth 14/Cadet/Junior tournament in Albuquerque, NM. The tournament was held November 11-14.

1st – Courtney Hurley – Cadet Women’s Epee
1st – Courtney Hurley – Junior Women’s Epee
3rd – Kimberly Howell – Youth 14 Women’s Epee
3rd – Kelley Hurley – Junior Women’s Epee
6th – Gabrielle Strass – Youth 14 Women’s Epee

Champions Club
Individual Members at $1,000+

Gary & Shelia Arthur; Morton Baird; Sam Barshop; Ed Benninger; James Blackwood; Susan Blackwood; June Bratcher; Tim Brierty; Howard Burris; Jim Callaway; Cassandra Carr; James Doyle; Jim Dublin; Charlie Ebrom; Dr. Frank Fichtel; Larry Franklin; Pat & Kelley Frost; Dr. Jamie Garza; Claude Gilmer; William Greehey; Joe Guinn; Bill & Marcia Hanson; Cheryl Haywood; Michael Imbimbo; Scott Hefner; Scott Helbing; George C. Hixon; Peter Holt; Steve Isom; Stacey Johnson; Michael Jourdan; Greg & Leigh Ann King; Michael Lynd; Lowry Mays; Red McCombs; James Mickey; Phil Miner; Tom Reardon; Marty Roos; Dr. David Schmidt; Dr. Earl Smith; Steve Souter; Michael G. Stoltz; Neill Walsdorf, Jr.; Carri Wells; Jeff Wentworth; Paul Young

Corporate Champions

City of San Antonio; SBC Communications Inc.

$50,000

Creative Link; IKON Office Solutions; San Antonio Express-News; Valero Energy Corporation

$20,000

Pepsi Bottling Group; San Antonio Coca-Cola Bottling Co; San Antonio Spurs; Whataburger, Inc.

$10,000

Budget Car & Truck Rental; Cingular Wireless; Langley & Banack; Maverick Video Production; NuMedia: Oak Farms Dairy; Paladin IT Services; Methodist Children's Hospital; Spectrum Health Clubs; Sports Medicine Associates of San Antonio, The Dominion Country Club

$5,000

George Becknell; Bender & Associates; BudCo., Inc.; The CE Group - Communication & Events; ChapmanSchewe Benefits Consulting; Comet Neon Advertising; The Darmstetter Company; Frost Bank; H-E-B Grocery Company; Hertz Corporation; JP Morgan Chase; KPMG; Merrill Lynch; Methodist Healthcare System; Michael Imbimbo, Inc.; Miner Corporation; The Plaza Club; Security Service Federal Credit Union; Soccer Sports Complex; Sterling Bank; Sterling Foods, Inc.; SWBC; Jon Turner; Wells Fargo Bank; Zachry Hospitality, Inc.

$2,500

Allegra Print & Imaging; Bank of America; Broadway National Bank; Carneiro, Chummney & Co.; C.C. Creations; Catering by Don Strange; Colonial Supplemental Insurance; Cox Smith Matthews Incorporated; Ear Medical Group; Ernst & Young; FIRSTMARK Credit Union; First Rate Investment Systems; Flowers Bakeries; GLI Distributing; Halo Distributing; Initial Security; Dr. Susan Marenda-King; Marriott Rivercenter/Riverwalk; Mission Pharmacal; Pape-Dawson Consulting Engineers, Inc.; San Antonio Economic Development Foundation; SpawGlass Contractors, Inc.; Tesoro Petroleum Companies; Walton Signage; Yantis Company

Grants/Foundations

The Alfred S. Gage Foundation, Bexar County Health & Human Services CDBG; Bexar County Women's Bar Foundation; Brown Foundation; Charity Ball Foundation; Coleman Foundation; Criminal Justice Division JJDP Grant; Criminal Justice Division Safe and Drug Free Schools Grant; GAC Halff Foundation; Light Foundation; Myra Stafford Pryor Charitable Trust; The Sequor Foundation; David & Betty Sachs Foundation; Smith Barney; Women’s Sports Foundation

Founding Sponsors

City of San Antonio; H-E-B; USAA Foundation, A Charitable Trust; Valero Energy Corporation