Curbside Crazy event supports new gym and events center

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Kacey Fang

Elizabeth Edwards (11) greets an incoming student as she and other athletes hold signs and wave pom-poms during the Curbside Crazy Event. The event is held to help support the construction of the new Events center.

Fall sports athletes arrived early yesterday morning to help out with a Curbside Crazy event that promoted donations to the new Events Center project.

The event contributed to raising donations for the new performing arts center and gym. Students from multiple fall sports participated by holding up signs and encouraging parents to donate to the cause.

“Hopefully if the parents see that the students are excited about this, maybe they will be excited and continue the strong capital campaign that we have right now,” Athletic Director Dan Molin said.

Yesterday’s Curbside Crazy marks the first of many that will occur every Friday until the Family & Alumni Picnic on Oct. 12. Each Friday will involve a different group that will benefit from the new construction. The event stemmed from a tradition of largely adult volunteers raising awareness for events such as the Picnic.

“The general idea of Curbside Crazies came from the Family & Alumni Picnic where a couple days before the picnic we used to have picnic volunteers standing on the curbside raising awareness for the picnic,” Director of Advancement Joe Rosenthal said. “It seemed to put smiles on people’s faces as they dropped off their kids to see people happy and greeting them cheerfully, and it’s kind of a Friday thing in Silicon Valley.”

The new gym will provide better facilities for athletes in specific sports, such as basketball and volleyball. Freshman Jackie Gao thinks that the new building will encourage and motivate athletes to play well during games.

“People would be cheering them on during home games,” she said. “Knowing that spectators are there to support them gives them hope.”

While basketball and volleyball players will use the new gym, athletes in other sports feel that they are unaffected. Sports such as cross country and tennis will still lack spaces like a track and a court at the Upper School.

“I think one problem we have is that because of our lack of facilities, we’re forced to go to all sorts of places for practices or for matches,” said cross country runner Vivek Sriram (12).

Orchestra performers will greet incoming parents next Friday morning at the front and back drop-off zones. According to Rosenthal, the Annual Giving Campaign currently has more donations than the same time during any previous years.