For the past 10 years Safe Graduation has been giving Fleetwood seniors the opportunity to have a party after their graduation without the risk of getting injured.
‘It really is a great program and it’s important,’ said Jay Buck a Fleetwood High School father who has been participating with the group for the last four years.
This year the group’s big fund raiser is a golf tournament at the Rich Maiden Golf Course, Fleetwood.
‘We’re in real need of golfers for the tournament,’ Buck said.
He says they have around 48 golfers signed up for the April 20 tournament and need 144 for a complete tournament.
‘The tournament is a great day for everyone including the seniors,’ Marsh said.
He explained that the seniors will work the tournament and bring out sodas to the golfers and drive the golf carts to transport the golfers.
‘They get to spend the afternoon doing something productive and worthwhile that ultimately benefits them,’ Marsh said.
In the past Safe Graduation has made an effort to raise $21,000 so that we have $1,500 left over for the next year’s senior class.Marsh explained that the group tries to begin every year with some money for the upcoming senior class.
The money raised from various Bingo events and the golf tournament goes to paying for busses to get the seniors from the high school to Ozzy’s Family Fun Centerin Leesport.
‘The busses leave the high school at 11 p.m. and they are at Ozzy’s until 5 a.m.,’ Buck said.
At Ozzy’s the students get essentially a full run of the place and participate in events that are planned by Safe Graduation.
‘There will be back and neck massages, there will be a magician and this year a DJ who donated his time is coming out to play music,’ Buck said.
‘They pretty much have a full run of the place,’ Buck said.
The parents of Fleetwood want this to be about more than just the seniors. They also want it to be about the community.
‘We’re trying to establish a tradition in the community, where they come together to help the seniors enjoy their special moment,’ Buck said.
According to Michael DeAntonio, the principal of Fleetwood Area High School, there has never been a problem with seniors acting out or in a reckless manner on graduation night in Fleetwood, but there have been at schools he’s worked at before.
He also believes that Safe Graduation is a good final send off for the students.
‘Students seem to thoroughly enjoy the evening. It gives them one last chance to interact with their class before everyone goes a separate way. Many students have been attending school together since kindergarten so it is a nice way to spend some final time together,’ DeAntonio said.
According to Buck, it is a day he wants everyone in the community to celebrate as nearly everyone in the community has come up with the students since they were in kindergarten. So far they have also had Bingo events that have been in part sponsored by Sorrelli Jewelry in Kutztown who have provided prizes for the bingo games.
Safe Graduation offers prizes in the tournament which in the past have been cash and free rounds of golf. At this point the prizes have not been set in stone. Apart from winning the tournament, prizes will be given to the golfers with the longest drive, closest to the pin and a pot of gold.
The golf tournament will be held on April 20, rain or shine, at Maiden Rich Golf Course in Fleetwood. To sign up or for more information on the tournament call Jay Buck at 610-507-1700. There are also openings for non-golfers to come and eat and socialize. Safe Graduation will be hosting another bingo event on April, 28 at Maiden Creek Banquet Hall in Blandon.
