What A Week

We have not quite digested the turkey and pumpkin pie, but this is the week for which we have been waiting!

Some of the finest swimmers preparing themselves early for important upcoming competitions will be in San Antonio for the US Open Swimming meet. Keep in mind that this is the third time that San Antonio has been privileged to host this event at the Palo Alto College Natatorium, and we have never been disappointed. Join us for some sheer swimming enjoyment. We hope that one of the next stops for USA Swimming is a site visit and the selection of San Antonio as the site of the 2008 Olympic team trials in July 2005. This is the event that we have dreamed of…All in the Alamodome!!! Keep your fingers crossed and come see some very fine swimming this weekend just to “wet” your whistle.

Go! Go! Go! Go the Alamodome on Sunday, December 5th from 2:00 to 4:00p.m. so that you don’t miss the Subway Victory Lap Celebration for the Diamond Shamrock Go!Kids Challenge. Over 160,000 boys and girls began walking ten weeks ago, and you can be on hand to congratulate the winners -- the children who have walked over 26 miles in an effort to introduce routine exercise in their lives every day!

It was my pleasure this week to be able to personally notify the winner of the Sports Foundation’s 2004 Leo and Chickie Rose Volunteer of the Year Award. After very careful consideration of the number of volunteer hours and events worked this year by many very qualified and dedicated nominees, the award goes to a very deserving couple. Congratulations to our 2004 Volunteers of the Year, Ethel and Malcolm Greig. They will be honored at the board of directors Christmas breakfast on December 14th. The nominator said it all…”It was a great day when Ethel and Malcolm decided to become volunteers for the Sports Foundation. They have done everything for us and have done it with a smile.” Congratulations to the Greigs and thank you to all of the volunteers who have given countless hours to make the 2004 events happen.

Dr. Susan Blackwood
Executive Director

 Subway Victory Lap Celebration this Sunday

All over San Antonio, thousands of children are walking their last few miles as they conclude the 10-week Diamond Shamrock Go!Kids Challenge™, a program of the Sports Foundation. At the Subway Victory Lap Celebration at 2 p.m. on Sunday, December 5, participants will walk their celebratory final lap around the Alamodome and receive their finisher’s t-shirt and medal from Mayor Ed Garza, local Olympians and other dignitaries.

Diamond Shamrock Go!Kids Challenge™ sponsors are planning lots of interactive fun for the kids and their families, too. Click here or call 210-820-2101 for details and come out to support our Go!Kids.

US Open Swimming Championships

This week see many of the international swimming world’s current and rising stars at the U.S. Open Swimming Championships, December 2-4 at the Palo Alto College Natatorium. Prelims begin each day at 9:30 a.m. Finals start at 6 p.m.

National and Olympic level athletes from the USA and other countries, including San Antonio’s own Josh Davis, will compete for the Open title in their events. Click here for a schedule of events and to purchase tickets online. Tickets may also be purchased at the Palo Alto College Natatorium on the days of the event. For further information call the San Antonio Sports Foundation at 820-2101.

It’s especially important to fill the stands with cheering fans at every US Open preliminary heat and final competition. As many of you know, San Antonio is on the short list of cities bidding to host the 2008 USA Olympic Swimming Trials, and the US Open is our chance to prove to USA Swimming that San Antonio is the place to be in 2008! Get your tickets today!

SASF SBC Golf Classic Rescheduled

The San Antonio Sports Foundation SBC Golf Classic has been rescheduled for Monday, December 13 at the Dominion Country Club.

Lunch will be served at 11:30 a.m. and the shotgun start is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. There are still some team and individual player slots remaining. Click here for a registration form. Contact Elena Stout at 210-820-2127 or estout@sanantoniosports.org for more information.

Lone Star Invitational Hooks Top HS Basketball to Town

On December 2-4, 2004, San Antonio will witness some of the best boys’ and girls’ high school basketball in the country. The 3rd Annual Lone Star Invitational, a nationally recognized high school basketball tournament, will host 32 boys’ and 32 girls’ teams from around the U.S., State of Texas and City of San Antonio.

On the game rosters of many elite schools around the country, this tournament will be the first opportunity for college coaches to get out and see some of the top recruits in the country and the response received thus far as been remendous.

Tickets range in price for students from $3-10 and $6-20 for adults. Session, day or tournament passes can be purchased at the door. Visit www.lonestarinvitational.com to learn more about the tournament

SBC Awards Grant for Go!Kids

On Wednesday, December 1, the SBC Foundation generously granted the Sports Foundation $50,000 to enhance its website, www.gokidschallenge.org. At a press conference attended by 500 students at Jackson-Keller Elementary, SBC’s Jerry Fuentes presented a giant check to Dr. Susan Blackwood, the Sports Foundation’s executive director.

Susan thanked the SBC Foundation and pledged to use the funds to help make the program’s website more interactive, creating a useful resource for Go!Kids and their families to stay active and healthy.

Celebrities Pump Up Go!Kids

Several celebrities have been helping to motivate Diamond Shamrock Go!Kids Challenge participants in this final week. Local Olympic hero Josh Davis (left) joined SBC and the Sports Foundation at Jackson Keller Elementary on Wednesday. He inspired the children to keep exercising and then took a Go!Kids walk with them around the playground.

WOAI-TV’s chief meteorologist Jennifer Broome (center) and Liza Hunter-Galvan (right), who represented her native New Zealand at the 2004 Summer Olympics and is a four-time winner of the San Antonio Marathon, visited Elm Creek Elementary (Southwest ISD) on Wednesday. Liza is also planning a visit to Coronado Village Elementary (Judson ISD) on Friday. Thanks to Josh, Jennifer and Liza for sharing their time and talent to motivate our Go!Kids!

Volunteers of the Year

Beginning with their volunteer efforts during 1993 Olympic Festival, Malcolm and Ethel Greig became permanent fixtures of the San Antonio Sports Foundation and have been a part of our team ever since. Throughout their years of dedicated service to the Foundation, this fun-loving couple has been involved with just about every event the Sports Foundation has been associated with, 2004 being no different. In fact, throughout this past year, the Greig’s have volunteered for 13 different events, not to mention the countless hours of administrative work they have done within the office.

In addition to their volunteer work with the Sports Foundation, this couple stays active with their church and its youth. They also volunteer at Fort Sam Houston, the Paseo Del Rio Association and cook for the homeless on a regular basis.

Loyalty, consistency, friendship, always served with a helping of humor are just a few of the many positives Malcolm and Ethel bring with their hard-working services.

Congratulations, Malcolm and Ethel, on being named the Leo & Chickie Rose 2004 San Antonio Sports Foundation’s Volunteers of the Year. Thank you for the bottom of our hearts!

Girls Scouts Take Aim at Fencing

Look out Zorro! This fall, 250 Girl Scouts will have earned their merit patch in fencing. The girls learn about the sport’s history and weapons, before donning protective gear and—en garde—fencing an opponent. The girls are divided into several groups so each gets plenty of attention. The session ends with a rollicking game of Swords and Sorcerers…which might look like chaos to the untrained eye. At the end of the 2 ½ hour session, several girls expressed an interest to continue learning the sport.

“We heard from other troops that they had a ball,” says Elaine Bejar, leader of troop #553. “Girl Scouts is not just arts and crafts. It’s trying new things. Our girls chose to come here.” Troop leader Diana Abbott thought the session was well organized and complimented the coaches’ interpersonal skills. She was also glad that her girls had an opportunity to get out and get moving.

“Fencing is an excellent sport for girls,” says José Sánchez, Dreams for Youth head fencing coach. “It doesn’t rely on strength and the tactical nature is perfect for women.” He points out that women aren’t the majority in most sports, including fencing (at the DFY Fencing Center, boys outnumber girls 6 to 1). Yet a woman won the United States’ first gold medal in the sport in the 2004 Summer Olympic Games.

Because there are so many Girl Scout troops, programs are assigned through a lottery. According to Erika Vinnup, program specialist, fencing has proved to be a popular choice. She plans to offer it again in the spring.

Dreams for Youth Holiday Family

Last year, Dora Velarde’s daughter, Melina, really wanted to take gymnastics offered by the San Antonio Sports Foundation’s Dreams for Youth after school program at Heritage Elementary in Southside ISD. Dora explained to Melina that it wasn’t fair to send just one child, and she could not afford to send Melina, her brother and her sister too.

But this year Dora decided that she would come up with the money and resolved to find the $30 DFY program fee. After saving grocery money, Dora’s three children started this fall. According to Dora, they love it. After spending the first two weeks happily complaining of soreness, the children look forward to participating and are more active all-around because of it.

The San Antonio Sports Foundation has chosen the Velarde family as its annual Dreams for Youth family beneficiary. If you’d like to donate a toy or clothing to the Velarde family, please bring your gift to the Sports Foundation office by December 17. The children are: Zelena (age 10-size 15-16), Arturo Jr. (age 7-size 10-12), Melina (age 5, size 6), and Destiny (age 3, size 5).

“This means so much to me and my family,” says Dora on being selected. “I thank God for these programs that help families like mine. Instead of being on the street, kids are doing something good for themselves.”

Curtis Anastasio; Gary & Shelia Arthur; Ann Ash; John Atterbury; Sam Barshop; Steve Bonnette; June Bratcher; Robert Braubach; Jenny Carnes; Cassandra Carr; Lea Ann Champion; Henry Cisneros; Craig Clayton; Jim Dublin; Bessie Flewellen; Roland Flores; Thomas Galvin; Michael Gilliam; Glen Glass; Bill Greehey; Ray Halani; Keith Harward; Duane Helm; Sid Hodges; Roy Horn; Mary Japhet; James Kahan; Billie May; Lowry Mays; Jose Menendez; Howard Patterson; Philip Pfeiffer; Charles Plummer; Victor Rodriguez; James Stewart; Edward Whitacre, Jr.; Ray Wilkins

Corporate Champions

Presenting Champions

City of San Antonio; SBC Communications Inc.

$50,000

Creative Link; IKON Office Solutions; San Antonio Express-News

$20,000

Advantage Rent-A-Car; H-E-B Grocery Company; 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; Frost Bank; Humana; JP Morgan Chase; KPMG; Michael Imbimbo, Inc.; Miner Corporation; The Plaza Club; Nathaniel Sanderson, M.D.; Security Service Federal Credit Union; Soccer Sports Complex; Jon Turner; Zachry Hospitality, Inc.

$2,500

Bank of America; Broadway Bank; Carneiro, Chummney & Co.; C.C. Creations; Cox Smith Matthews Incorporated; Ernst & Young; Host/Chelsea Joint Venture of San Antonio; IntelliSolve Group, Inc.; Dr. Susan Marenda-King; Catering by Don Strange; Dublin & Associates; Fintan Technologies; Flowers Bakeries; Fulbright & Jaworski; GLI Distributing.; Initial Security; Marriott Plaza San Antonio; Marriott Rivercenter/Riverwalk; Pape-Dawson Consulting Engineers, Inc.; SpawGlass Contractors, Inc.; Sterling Bank; Sterling Foods, Inc.; Walton Signage; Yantis Company

Grants/Foundations

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; Light 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