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MANVILLE: Game proceeds to benefit students

By Mary Ellen Zangara, Special Writer
   In order to help some of Manville High School’s less fortunate students, physical education teacher Carrie Smith organized a student-faculty volleyball game Friday.
   Even though the school hasn’t hosted such a game “in years,” according to Ms. Smith, she felt it would be successful. And she was right — she noted some teachers participated because volleyball doesn’t require as much running as basketball, drawing at least one more team to compete.
   ”This is for the student needy fund here at Manville,” Ms. Smith said about the high school’s Principal’s Fund. “There are a lot of students who don’t have shoes that properly fit them, (or) clothes.” She added such students often can’t afford to participate in field trips or other class activities.
   For a Friday night, Ms. Smith said, “It was an awesome turnout for the kids.”
   Seven student teams and one staff team wowed the crowd as they dove, punched and spiked the ball over the net. It started with the student teams playing each other, narrowing it down by process of elimination.
   The “Asian-Causation Invasion” team of seniors Dan Kirkaldy, Dan Pierrot, Matt Zangara, Derek Sanchez, Pawel Maziarz, junior Juni Sanchez and sophomore Jess Sanchez won every game to advance to the finale to play against the school staff team. ACI played the staff for the best two out of three, winning both to become the event’s undefeated champions.
   ”It was all in fun and it was something good that we could do,” Pawel said. “We had a lot of team spirit and we knew it was going to be a lot of fun.”
   ”It was fun and I enjoyed it,” Juni said. Like a lot of the students, she said she wished she could play on a team for the school.
   Although Ms. Smith didn’t give a total of the amount raised at Friday’s event through a $32 entry fee per team and other fundraising efforts, she wants to continue raising money for the local students.
   ”We are going to keep this fund going and, hopefully, we will get $2,000 or $3,000 every year and .. . the fund will get bigger and bigger,” she said. “They already want another one (volleyball game), so hopefully we will do it for the same charity and we can bring some money to our school.”
   The funds are managed by the school principal. Donations can be made directly to MHS Principal Donald Woodring.