Wilbraham & Monson Academy has a special way of rallying behind one of its own. The Academy's Girls' Volleyball team will lead the school's latest charge when it hosts a charity match against Ludlow High School Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. in honor of a WMA family member.
Joan Kennedy, mother of Teresa '12 and Brian Kennedy '15, passed away Aug. 31 after her second bout of breast cancer. Teresa and her dad, Tom, will serve as guests of honor for the match, with all proceeds going to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation in memory of Joan.
"In general, I've been impressed to see the lengths WMA has gone to support my family in this difficult time," said Teresa, who recently graduated from Notre Dame University and is now working as an English as a Second Language teacher at the Academy." When (Coach) Donna (Barone) said they were going to play the game in my mom's honor, I was shocked and incredibly grateful the team was able to do something like that: one, to make my family feel even more supported here, and two, to go to a cause very near and dear to us. It means a lot that the team is doing this for my mom.
"We're very excited to attend it. My dad is a huge WMA fan and any excuse to get on campus and do something is great for him. And, I'm excited. One of my students is on the team and this is a good excuse to go to the game for a very meaningful reason. I'm looking forward to it."
This is the seventh annual charity match between WMA and Ludlow, with the schools alternating sites.
"We bring together private and public schools because cancer doesn't know the difference," Coach Barone said.
"We're looking forward to it. It should be a fun match. Because there is no pressure to win or lose we can mix up the formation. We've been working on activities here on campus and we'll tie this in with our activities on campus that night to make it a fun event for the kids. The raffle items will be with the kids in mind."
Raffle items will include gift cards to Friendly's, Dunkin Donuts and iTunes, as well as others. The match typically draws its largest crowd of the season.
"The charity game is the best game of the season," Courtney Fallon '17 said. "We all get together. It's a team bonding because we hang out beforehand. We wear a different uniform and we hang posters and balloons. We try to do a bunch of crazy things so people will donate money. It's a lot of fun."