Pints for Sophie

Coach Zimmer caught wind of a community Blood Drive happening at nearby Carey Ridge Elementary School in honor of Sophie Collier and had this to say:

Please pass this on to anyone you know that will be near CRES on October 7th. There isn't a person that has walked into this middle school building that has more of a positive influence on those around them than this young girl. I know we've already done a blood drive but maybe our 100+ guys can just tell their families/community about this one.

We're suckers for service opportunities, so we wanted to pass along the full details...

The Indiana Blood Center along with our PTO is sponsoring a blood drive on Wednesday, October 7 from 2:00-7:00 p.m. We are honoring, former CRES student, Sophie Collier, with this blood drive. Sophie is having heart surgery in October and we are hoping our blood drive brings in lots of "pints for Sophie." Please see below for more information.

Carey Ridge Elementary School Blood Drive

Wednesday, October 7, 2015 

2:00PM - 7:00PM

Multi-Purpose

Click here to sign up!

Eligibility: The donation process takes less than an hour.  It is recommended that donors have a light snack before donating.  Most people are eligible to donate.  There are very few causes for deferral and very few medications that are not acceptable.  Not sure if you are eligible to donate?  Email Eligibility.  Indiana Blood Center must see 550 individuals each and every day in order to meet the patient needs at the 60+ hospitals it supplies.

More questions?  Feel free to contact: Courtney Howay (choway@indianablood.org).

Actually, We Won

It didn't feel like it, but we still won on Friday. While the football game score was unpleasant for us, a more important score was being kept that should be much more heart-warming. We, as a community, raised $2500 for the IWIN charity! Not only that, but for a smaller, local charity, the exposure was worth more than money can count.

Our football family has been heavily touched by this and other cancer-related diseases, and we absolutely consider it a victory when we can make a difference like this. I already shared the channel 13 special report via Facebook, but it bears linking here again if you haven't seen it.

Proud to be a Shamrock. #RocksMakeADifference

P.S. - Thanks to any Avon Orioles that may have made a donation. We truly appreciate any help that you provided. At the end of the game, we're all Hoosiers that have likely been touched by cancer. "Love your neighbor..."

Special Olypmics Clinic

Each year, one of our favorite activities is the short clinic we host for Special Olympics. It always serves to remind us what is pure and fun about the sport of football. It is all too easy to get caught up in the wins and losses, the highlights and lowlights, standings and schedules. Sports are so much more than all of those things. Thank you to all of our Special Olympics participants for taking the time to remind us...

Below are some more pictures (for even more, check out SOHC's Facebook post here).

Rocks United Giveback

Friday is the home opener for us, and the theme is United. Players have been selling shirts, and we're hoping for the stands to be red, white, and blue. Also, we're always looking for good charities to serve, and we felt that the Wounded Warrior Project went well with the theme. To that end, we've set up a Rocks Football donation page if you are interested. Our goal is $1,000, but I think we should be able to easily achieve that and then some. Please consider giving to this worthy cause.

Thank you to our troops for everything you do for us!

Be sure to pack the house Friday (wearing something patriotic) as we honor those who serve and protect our great country.

Story Behind The Ice Bucket Challenge

Since we currently have donation/voting going for which of our coaches will be taking the challenge, I thought it appropriate to share the story behind the challenge...

Taking Votes

Haiti Mission Trip: Current in Westfield

I wanted to take a quick moment today to point out that the Current in Westfield ran a nice article about the Mission Trip and our football family members. Check it out on their website HERE. I'm always looking to pass along good press, so never hesitate to share if you find something before we do.

Haiti Mission Trip: Video

Another entry into our Haiti Mission Trip journal, we have a video put together by Mr. Lickfeldt. For those of you that may not have been able to review the photo albums through snapfish, here is a little taste set to some great music. So proud to be a Rock.

(If the video doesn't load, here is a LINK to YouTube.)

Haiti Mission Trip: Coach G's Reflections

Amazing and astonishing.  That’s how I’d describe our mission trip to Haiti.  It seemed like there were two worlds competing for one space, almost like Heaven and Hell existing on the same turf.  I am positive that those of us who went will be changed forever.  We selflessly served the Haitian people and they certainly made a difference in our lives as well.

The Amazing

I was amazed at the Haitian people on a number of levels.  Haitians seem naturally kind and happy.  They live very simple, patient lives, rooted in Christianity and free from the distractions of wealth and status.  We encountered smiles and warm greetings everywhere we went, and heard many people joyfully singing as well.  We received love from orphans, school children, teachers, and strangers.  Our group earned the gratitude and help of the town’s people who consistently gave us a thumbs up and uttered “good” or “God bless you” in English for filling in potholes with cement.  Haitian children showed trust and affection to our players as they tried their hand at football and kicked our butts at soccer.  I was amazed at the Haitians love for Christ.  The name of Jesus is seen and heard everywhere.  The pride of the Haitian people is also amazing.  I was surprised at the high level of professionalism.  Men are always in pants and collared shirts, wearing shoes that are shined.  Women teach in suits and wear nice dresses.  Kids wear uniforms to school and carry a rag to make sure their shoes are not dusty.  All schools are private and it’s a privilege to be a student (there is a lot of discipline in the Haitian schools!).  Cars are clean.  The average Haitian has very little, but they really take care of what they have.  The people are also very resourceful and waste nothing.  Part of our mission work included pulling rusty nails out of boards so that they could be reused.  Lastly, the resolve of the Haitian people is truly amazing.  Haiti gained independence when African slaves successfully revolted against the French colonists in the late 1700’s.  More recently, the country was reduced to rubble after the 2010 earthquake that killed 300,000 people.  Yet, there is a unity and hope that is instilled in the Haitian people – a belief that they will stand strong through whatever it takes to get the country back on its feet.

The Astonishing

I am not sure how a society takes the leap to believe that anything that is nice must be guarded behind walls with barbed wire, but that is Haiti.  Of course the walls and our armed guard made us feel safer, but it’s sad in a way as well.  The poverty in Haiti was overwhelming.  I have experienced a lot of poverty in America, but I have seen nothing like this before.  Clearly world poverty is on a completely different level than American poverty.  As a kid, there were many times when we counted on the government to bail us out, but we were confident that we would have shelter and food at a minimum.  Most Haitians are just living in the moment, trying to gasp within the smothering poverty that makes tomorrow uncertain and every meal a luxury.  Minimum wage for hard working people is $5 per day in a place two hours south of Florida.  Astonishing.  Naturally there is not health care or retirement programs set up for the people unless they are funded by missionaries.  People graciously waited for hours to see the doctor at Three Angels.  I was disappointed in the lack of civil leadership.  People told us the government has suffered from corruption for years.  In the meantime, the things that we take for granted go unfulfilled in Haiti.  There is no water delivery system anywhere.  Electricity is sparse without a generator.  Most Haitians live without septic.  There is no regular trash pick-up so people inexplicably throw their garbage out on the streets.  Infrastructure is a mess.  We saw potholes deep enough to lose a car in!  I saw one police officer in six days and there seems to be no rules regarding traffic.  The United Nations serves as Haiti’s army.  Sadly, there is no public education in Haiti.  The overwhelming majority in Haiti are illiterate and the President of the country has a 6th grade education.  Children lucky enough to be sponsored get to go to school typically run by missionaries.  For me, education is the destroyer of ignorance, so I was very upset to find out how many kids never attend school.

The Conclusion

Haiti is an amazing place and the people had a great impact on all of us.  I would like to go back some day to look at the progress that’s been made.  And I hope that the Haitians would see a progress in my heart and priorities as well.

Haiti Mission Trip: Pictures

I have a longer post coming from Coach G sometime very soon, but he shared a whole bunch of pictures from the recent mission trip to Haiti with me this morning. I wanted to pass along the link. You will have to sign up for a free account to view the pictures, but there are a ton there and a lot of fun to view. THIS LINK should take you to the correct Snapfish album area. If you're having problems viewing, shoot us a comment!

We are very grateful for the opportunity. Hope you enjoy the pictures! Kenbe Fem!

Honored Mentions

A pair of neat things happened for the team in the last week that are worth noting on here.

First of all, we were honored prior to a Varsity Basketball game on Tuesday night with a short ring presentation announcement. The rings are pretty cool, if we don't say so ourselves. Check 'em out on the poster. (And if you'd like a poster, shoot Coach Gilbert an email. We had a bunch made up because, well, we're proud of our family.)

Second, we were honored by St. Vincent's with their Spirit of Sport Award in the month of January. Check out the awesome YouTube video HERE (or on their Facebook page). We always love it when our family gets recognized for the good stuff they just think is the "right thing to do."

Rocks Special Olympics

Saturday was one of our favorite days, and not only because we got to celebrate beating HSE on Friday. Certainly, that was a special night, but what the Rocks did on Saturday was even more special to us. This is the second year we've had the opportunity to host a Special Olympics football clinic. Both years have proven the event to be one of our favorite chances to serve and interact with the community. It's a great time for everyone involved, and something we look forward to putting on each year.

I believe a lot of times, football can seem like a very serious game. In this season, the headlines are full of it. Turn on the TV any given day and you'll probably get your fair share of injuries or personnel changes or controversial calls. A lot of people invest a lot of energy into football with due cause; football is a special game.

But it is a game all the same. Sometimes, it takes a special perspective to remind you. Games are fun. Games bring people together. Games produce smiles and laughter. That is why we love games, first and foremost, and Saturday's football clinic was a poignant reminder of this fact. One need only look at all the faces. What a great game!

Upcoming Events of Interest

There are a few extra events coming up that Rock Fans may wish to support.

First up, there will be a Car Wash on Saturday, September 21st from 8AM - 4PM. Come to the Logo Shop and get your car prettified, all while supporting Rocks Football.

Second, we'll be hosting another Special Olympics Football Clinic this year, on September 28 from 10-11AM. This was an absolute blast last year, and one of our favorite events. It will be held at the same place: the Shamrock practice fields. 

Lastly, there will be a BW3's Dinner Fundraiser on Wednesday, October 16th from 6-9PM. Head on over to the BW3's off 146th street to support the Rocks. We'll be getting a percentage of the proceeds. Plus, I'm sure we'll be downing our fair share of wings.

Kembe Fem and the Scrimmage Format

To wrap up camp, we had a fundraising opportunity to help a Haitian orphanage that was destroyed in an earthquake. They're attempting to rebuild, and we committed to sell 1,000 T-shirts to raise money for the cause. This would net the orphanage $10,000, enough to replace one of the buildings lost in the disaster. "Kembe Fem" is Haitian for "Stand Strong," and we thought it went well with our season theme of "Resolve." Plus, we're suckers for a good service opportunity.

It was a really short fundraiser. We only had a few days before we needed to turn in the order forms so that the shirts could be printed in time for our first game. I'm happy to report that we made the goal anyway, and are looking forward to celebrating against Harrison on the 23rd. We're hoping to see a sea of neon green Kembe Fem shirts in the stands supporting us and the Haitian orphanage. If you weren't able to get a shirt, feel free to find something that is neon green and wear it anyway. Visibility is always good.

Before we get to the home opener, though, we have a scrimmage tonight. 7PM at Hamilton Heights. Come on out and support the Rocks. We'll be sporting our new road jerseys tonight.

For the curious, we will be following scrimmage format B (as dictated by the IHSAA). The scrimmage setup is as follows:

OPTION B
Note: This scrimmage does not involve the kicking game in any way (i.e. punts, kickoffs,extra points).

• 20 Minute Warm-Up
• 15 Plays or 15 Minutes Team B -35 Yard Line
• 15 Plays or 15 Minutes Team A -35 Yard Line
• 4 Minute Break
• 10 Plays or 10 Minutes Team A +10 Yard Line
• 10 Plays or 10 Minutes Team B +10 Yard Line
• 4 Minute Break
• 12 Plays or 12 Minutes Team A +35 Yard Line
• 12 Plays or 12 Minutes Team B +35 Yard Line
• 1 Minute Transition Break [Entry of reserve players who have not yet played]
• 8 Plays or 8 Minutes Team A - RESERVES -35 Yard Line
• 8 Plays or 8 Minutes Team B - RESERVES -35 Yard Line
• 4 Minute Break
• 8 Plays or 8 Minutes Team A - RESERVES Yard Line of Choice
• 8 Plays or 8 Minutes Team B – RESERVES Yard Line of Choice
• Total Time for Scrimmage: 2 hours & 19 minutes (including warm-up & breaks) (106 plays)

Coach Pribbs and the Habitat Report

Apart from the pictures, Coach Pribbeno sent me the following report from the field...

On May 4th, the high school football team did their Spring community service project. This season we wanted to make a difference locally. We got into contact with Habitat for Humanity to see what we could do around here. They were building a house in Cicero which is 15 minutes Northeast of Westfield. We decided that was the project for us. The only problem was that it fell on a day where many players had other things going on. Some had SATs and some had another sports event. We had about 15 people able to make between players, coaches and family.

Before we started, we made sure to let them know that our work was not guaranteed and there was definitely no warranty! They still wanted us to work, so we got started. The flooring had already been started but we needed to finish it first. We had to glue down plywood, and then have the players come through to nail it down. When they first asked who wanted to use the nail gun, thankfully another lady’s hand went up first. The rest of the players had to do it the old fashion way. Some struggled more than others and needed (on estimate) 14 nails and 100 hits before they finally got 1 nail in the right spot and straight in. Others got the hang of it quickly.

We kept looking around and from time to time some of the guys were missing. Turns out they were sneaking off to eat some donuts!

Brock and Russell had the difficult task of going underneath the flooring and making sure there weren’t any nails sticking out and pick up anything that fell down there. They were picked for this job because of their tall stature and being nimble.

Coach Sturgis showed up and he had a look in his eye of determination. He was ready to build this house and nothing was going to stop him. Oh wait... lunch came and that stopped everyone for a little bit. The church down the road was nice enough to provide some ham or turkey sandwiches, a bag of chips, and some cookies.

Now, back to the building. One of the carpenters (you know someone who actually knew what he was doing) works in one of the prisons teaching the men there carpentry skills. He and the prisoners would build all of the panels for each house. The guys get some great training and Habitat gets some panels which help make this process so much easier. So they had all of the panels built and numbered. Now was the fun part of just carrying these panels up to the house and putting them in the correct spot. No problem with all the great football players… or so we thought. It was funny that every time we needed some muscle some of the guys were missing!

Then, surprise surprise, AD somehow found the nail gun. I sat back and thought our biggest and strongest guy is now doing a job that does not need much muscle while we are asking Mr. Krieg and Mr. Turley to carry some of these big panels!

Either way, we had Ryan “nimble like a cat” Pape, Gavin “Doin’ Work” Cross, Mitch “Handyman” Turley, Nick “1,000 hammer hits” Kreig, and other volunteers bringing the panels up and putting them where they needed to go. Then, AD would hammer it in with the gun. Whenever he was going to use the gun, everyone made sure to clear the area just to be sure we were safe and kept all of our digits.

Overall, it was a great experience and the players really got a feeling of accomplishment. We picked the perfect day where there was a lot of heavy lifting and no painting. After the last experience with these guys and a paint brush, I made sure that was something we were not doing! Thanks to everyone who took time to come and help. Delores (the lady we were building the house for) was very appreciative. I also think the other volunteers were very happy we were there to lift the heavy panels and do all the fun work no one else wanted to do.

Thanks again to everyone! I had a blast, and it looked like everyone had fun and felt like we Made a Difference!

Supporting The Habitat

This last weekend found a handful of Rocks helping to build homes for Habitat for Humanity. Coach Pribbeno was on scene with a camera phone, and snagged some photos. You may have already seen them on Twitter, but I gathered them up and threw them into our Summer 2013 photo album here. I also thought I'd share a few of my favorites.

Way to Make a Difference, Rocks!

Spring Community Service Project

In addition to our Build the Rock update, I have another post today. This one an announcement about an opportunity to serve the community. Shamrocks will be working with Habitat for Humanity, and likely be doing the foundation and early stages of building a house. This is a great chance for some team building and to give back.

The opportunity will be on Saturday, May 4th from 9AM to 4PM. Any football player over the age of 16 (sorry for the age restriction!) is encouraged to come and donate what time they can! We will be working at 350 S. Washington Avenue in Cicero, IN. Slap that into your friendly neighborhood GPS and come on out!

In order to help us, we need players to officially sign up through Habitat's Hamilton County Website. In the top bar select "get involved." Scroll down and click "volunteer now." Find the date and click on "Westfield Football." Finally, click on "sign in." Should take all of five minutes. If you have problems, let one of the coaches know (or email us!).

Hope to see you there!

Thank You Hunter, PRIDE Pins, and Special Olympics

I've got a few short points to hit today. First, a thank you to former Colts punter Hunter Smith for stopping by our practice on Thursday. He spoke at the chapel breakout and again after dinner about character. He posited a very simple goal for our players: Choose to be men of character!

I also wanted to recognize the PRIDE pin nominations for this week. You'll find the list below. A (p) after the name indicates that this was the third nomination for that person, making them eligible for a pin. Considering this is week 3, that also means their work ethic has been impeccable for the first three weeks. Good stuff.

PRIDE Pin Nominations for Week 3: Renzo Alvarez (p), Keegan Benich, Josh Blanton (p), Zane Burtron (p), Jonathan Cochran, Same Coe, Gavin Cross, Matt Crupi, Stephen Curry, Austin Dalton, Anthony Daugherty (p), Dalton Davis, Jamarcus Davis, Will Davis, Chris Davis, Jacob Eccles, Nick Ferrer (p), Joey Freeze, David George, A.J. Gilchrist, Brock Ginder, Normando Gonzalez, Jake Grace, Cameron Harrison, Jack Hiatt, Warrick Hinshaw, Adrien Hobelman, Adam Horkay (p), Ben Huntley (p), Daniel Kainrath (p), Tyler Keller, Nick Krieg (p), Zack Krieg (p), Luke Lammers (p), Dan Liebbe (p), Jordan Long, Carson Lorts (p), Ben Lotfalian, Austin Mazura, Will McCool, Max McCool, Cole McCrary, Daryn Milton, Eric Miner, Ryan Pape, Bailey Partlow, Ryan Pepiot, Luke Peters, Devin Reece, Jacob Robinson (p), Nick Schaeffer, Logan Schneider, Cam Shaw, Jay Simons (p), Evan Slagle (p), Noah Smith, Luke Speek, Trey Stewart, Deryion Sturdivant (p), Jacob Tebbe (p), Sam Trompen, Ryan Tuffnell, Mitch Turley (p), Paul Wait (p), Sam Walden, Blake Waters, Colin White, Nick Woerner (p), Ryan Wonderlin, Grady Young, Andy Aiken.

Finally, the team wanted to say thank you to all of the Special Olympians that attended Saturday's clinic. From all accounts, it was a blast. I've embedded the group picture below (along with a quotation from team Captain Nick Ferrer), but there are a whole bunch more. 170 of them, to be exact. I've uploaded them into an album that anyone can view if you click here. Enjoy, and go Rocks!

"The Special Olympics clinic was truly inspirational." Nick Ferrer, Junior QB 

Special Needs Football Clinic

This weekend, the Westfield High School Football Team will be hosting a special football skills training clinic at the WHS practice fields. The clinic will go from 10-11:30AM, and be run by Rocks players. This is a great opportunity for our team to reach out a special segment of the community, and another unique event that we're hungrily looking forward to.

I'll be trying to live tweet again at the event, snapping pictures and sending them out. I'll also try to snag the Leadership Council for a word. This should be a great morning.

On a personal note, one of our managers, Grant Lusk, has been competing in other Special Olympics events. The team has been quite proud of his competitive drive and obvious love for sport. Grant has been a great help as a manager, and is perhaps one of the most enthusiastic members of our football family. We're lucky to have him.

Special Olympics is a great program, and the Rocks are extremely thankful for the opportunity to offer this clinic. We hope to see you there. Here's the flyer in case you'd like to print it off and spread the word:

Click for a larger view.

(Edit: The clinic should wrap up by 11:30. I didn't have a new edition of the flyer available, and didn't want to wait to get the word out. Anyone giving rides to attendees should plan on 11:30.)

Kids Against Hunger Follow-Up

On Saturday, after morning film review,  your Shamrocks gathered in the WHS LGI room for a service opportunity. The football team was joined by the lovely Shamrock Cheerleaders, and proceeded to pack 12,096 meals for Kids Against Hunger.

We took a whole bunch of pictures (many of which I tweeted out during the event) and I've placed them in a separate album online. If you'd like to have a closer look at the album, follow this link.

Afterward, I asked the leadership council to get back to me with a quotation about the experience, and was also given a few from the cheerleaders. What follows is directly from the mouth of Rocks...

"Kids Against Hunger gave our team a great opportunity. We made thousands of meals for people that really need it. It was a quick and easy, yet very efficient way to make a difference on a bigger scale." - Football Leadership Council

“It’s the little things we do and great experiences that we have that allows us to extend our Rocks family, even to those children overseas.” - Stephanie Chinn, Varsity senior

“The opportunity that we got to share with the football team to make a difference in the world will not only impact the individuals that these meals will be sent to but it’s also made an impact on me and those around me today. It was a great learning experience and a hands on one, too! Couldn’t be more proud to be a Shamrock!” - Maddie Hutson, Varsity sophomore

“It is so inspiring how much of an impact a group of people coming together, forgetting about their own problems, and helping the ones who are really in need can make.” - Kylene Dolen, JV sophomore

"By taking on hour out of our day, we were able to help hundreds of others live another hour, another day, another year. We came together with the football team, we made 12,000 meals for starving kids all over, we helped stop starvation. It feels good that we were able to make a difference in the world.” - Abby Bogdajewicz, JV freshman

“One hand makes an impact, but one big family that’s hungry makes a difference.” - Emily Lawhorn, JV junior

Thanks to the Cheerleaders for joining us! It was a great event and we were definitely hungry to serve. Go Rocks!

Highlights: WHS vs Avon

I'll publish the Rock Report on Monday with a better summary of Friday's game. For the weekend highlights, I just wanted to share the results and link to our video area. We played Avon well last night, but came up on the short end of a 20-24 score. Avon punched in the go-ahead touchdown with less than a minute on the clock. A Shamrock heart-breaker to be sure.

Still, the night was not without Shamrock highlights. You can find the team clips selected each week by the coaches here.

Fair warning, some are selected for learning purposes, but we tag the exciting plays, too. So if you see a clip that makes you scratch your head, likely we were speaking to it at film review this morning. Just enjoy the good ones. :-)

We've forwarded two clips to the Indy Star for consideration in their weekly top ten poll (Gilly's play finished 3rd last week, I believe). I'll post a link once the poll goes live, probably early in the week. The plays are:

• QB Nick Ferrer's 80 TD pass to WR Kory Kostecka.
• LB Logan Floor's fumble recovery and 20 yard return for a defensive touchdown.

It also bears mentioning that the team took part in a service opportunity this morning with Kids Against Hunger. I've tweeted a whole bunch of pictures from the experience, and will be posting an article (with reflections from some of our players) in the near future.

As much as I hate losing on Friday, packing 12,000 hunger relief packets this morning felt like a victory of a different sort. Hungry to win. Hungry to serve. They go hand-in-hand.