Local business owner steps up to help ringette team

Sports aren’t just about learning athletic skills. They’re about gaining life skills as well.

Last month, a utility trailer full of empty bottles was stolen in the city. The bottles had been collected by the Regina Raptors U-10 ringette team.

It was heartbreaking for the members of the team, who had worked hard to get well over $1,000 in bottles.

Raptors head coach Graham Lauten said the team had raised $500 in replacement funds since the trailer was stolen. Now, however, someone in the community has stepped up to help even more.

Lauten said he got a call this week from John Gross, who owns JG Homes in Regina.

“He wanted to reach out, and donate $1,000 to our team,” Lauten said.

Lauten said the donation is a huge help. The money raised during the bottle drive was to help the Raptors go to a tournament in Edmonton, where there are awards for the team that collects the most money for cancer research.

“It’s fantastic,” Lauten said of the donation. “It gives me something really great to bring up with the team and to the girls to accentuate our point that there are good people in the world helping out their cause and all of their hard work didn’t go for nothing.”

The donation puts the Raptors at their goal for the tournament, but Lauten said they won’t stop trying to raise money for the cause.

“We had a budget in mind of what we wanted to make to go toward our team and then anything additional would go into that pot to donate toward the tournament fundraising,” he said.