StGC Sports Council’s helmet fundraiser aims for big impact
Published:Friday | November 24, 2023 | 12:08 AMKeisha Hill/Senior Gleaner Writer
THE MISSION of St George’s College (STGC) is to prepare students for tertiary education and to enable them to become men of competence, who will assume positive leadership roles in transforming societies. The college also ensures that the students are well-rounded in all spheres of their learning pursuits, including sports that has played a pivotal role in transforming the lives of many of its students.
The St College’s Sports Council has the responsibility to support the sporting teams and student athletes, and has been spearheading a number of initiatives geared at facilitating the financial needs of its various programmes.
According to Lascelle Powell, chairman of the St George’s College Sports Council, over the years, the STGC Sports Council has taken great pride in the work that they have done in supporting the sporting teams at the North Street-based institution.
“As Knights, we are very proud when we see our student athletes excel in local competitions and even on the national and international levels. But maybe our greatest joy is when we undertake projects which are of benefit to the entire STGC student community and even the community at large,” Powell said.
“For instance, the refurbishing of the Fr James Hosie, SJ Courts, named after the late principal and tennis coach who served over 20 years at the institution. The courts which are the home to the many-times Inter-Secondary School Administration Basketball Champions, as well as their tennis team, was refurbished to near international standard at a cost of millions of dollars. This benefits the entire school population,” Powell added.
The recent refurbishing of the stands at Emmet Park Pavilion is another project that the STGC Sports Council has undertaken, in collaboration with the support sought through an old boy, David Drysdale from the Class of 1987. “We are particularly proud of this project as the structure had fallen into disrepair and had become hazardous to the students. Now the students, staff and other patrons can sit in comfort and watch events at Emmet Park,” Powell said.
Chief among its current fundraising efforts is the St George’s College Helmet project, that according to Kenrick Barnaby, general secretary of the STGC Sports Council, and conceptualiser of the initiative, as Knights, the institution strives to discover, experiment and develop methods that will impact the society.
“We wanted to do something unique, something that would stand out and even lead to questions. We believe we have accomplished that, because persons have been contacting us and asking the same question; why are we using helmets as part of our fundraising efforts,” Barnaby said.
“While we embrace the traditional fundraising efforts, let me state that St George’s College is not an ordinary institution. According to the history books, in March 1939, St George’s College built the first science laboratory on the island. That makes us unique. We are St George’s College,” Barnaby added.
According to Powell, the STGC Helmet depicts a willingness to put in the requisite hard work to get the job done by the students. Whenever, he said, any member of the STGC family needs that little bit of extra motivation to continue working hard, the STGC Helmet stands as a symbol of that ethos
“Recently this was clearly displayed when our Manning Cup team needed a point from their last quarter-final game against the defending champions, Jamaica College. The young Knights looked up in the stands at Jamaica College and saw the sea of light blue-clad supporters, many sporting the symbolic STGC Helmet, and were inspired to perform as they did and put on a valiant defensive display to advance to the semi-finals,” he said.
There are many positive things happening at St George’s College, Powell said, both in terms of academics, discipline and extracurricular activities. “We want all Knights to be proud of their institution and show this by being part of this unique project which depicts the workmanlike approach taken by Knights to all tasks they are undertaking,” he said.
The cost for a STGC Helmet is $3500, and can be ordered through email address: sportscouncil@stgc.org. This same email address is also available for anyone who want to donate or contribute to STGC Sports Council.