Basketball tournament is a slam dunk for United Way of Addison County

On Sunday, May 1, 13 AAU boys basketball teams participated in the first annual basketball event to raise money for the United Way of Addison County. Four teams from Middlebury participated in the event, in addition to three other teams from Addison County. The rest of the groups traveled from across Vermont to join in the festivities. The event, hosted by the Middlebury Wolverines, which is the local boys basketball club, was held in Pepin Gym. The club, now in its third year, was excited to participate in the tournament, as it was its first time playing at home.
The College, too, was thrilled to host the event, especially since proceeds were donated to a local cause. Erin Quinn, the director of athletics, and his wife Pam, the field house manager, are co-chairs of the United Way’s fundraising campaign this year, so it seemed the ideal place to donate money. The Quinn’s son, Connor, is also an 8th grader on the Wolverine team.
Teams were required to pay an entry fee, and this money, in combination with the profits from concessions, t-shirts sold, the 50/50 raffle and pledges for points scored, yielded a $1,168 donation to the United Way of Addison County. Local businesses, including Green Peppers Pizza and Middlebury Bagel Deli, donated food.
Katharine DeLorenzo, the field hockey and assistant lacrosse coach at the College, organized the event, with help from her husband, Gene DeLorenzo, a night watchman at the College, and Pam.
“It certainly was an “all hands on deck” kind of day and put a smile on my face to see it all come together,” said Katharine, who was especially appreciative of the help from the men’s and women’s basketball teams, in an email.
The two teams worked the games, and Nolan Thompson ’13 and Ryan Sharry ’12 coached Middlebury’s 7th grade team.
“Our Wolverine boys really follow the College guys team closely and this was a thrill for them,” said Katharine in an email.
After the success of the first event, Katharine, Gene and Quinn hope to organize two more similar ones next spring.