Caldwell High School Cross Country and Track Booster Club Inc

Under normal circumstances, our fundraising efforts including selling hotdogs at the Caldwell 4th of July Celebration, and concessions throughout the school year would suffice to cover the operating costs of our program. This has been the case for many years since the Caldwell School District normally covers basic costs such as transportation to local meets, 50% of uniform costs when needed, and other unavoidable costs associated with high school sports programs.

However, this May (2024), coach Derek Call and I were deeply saddened to learn that the $4.2 million supplemental levy that helps cover the mentioned costs would be cut from the school district budget. Aside from the closure of Lincoln Elementary and Canyon Springs High School, the budget cut really hit close to home when we were informed that the Cross Country and Track programs (Cross Country in the Fall and our same kids who also run Track in the fall) would now need to fundraise more money to cover what is normally covered by the school.

Here are just a few ways this will affect our kids this upcoming season starting in August:

Students wishing to run Cross Country and track will now have to pay the school a “participation fee.” Our goal as coaches is to raise enough funds to cover this fee for any students who wish to join the team so we don’t discriminate against kids who can’t afford to “pay to play.” A healthy activity and building memories in sports shouldn’t cost families more than it already does.

We are now responsible for transportation costs to any meets outside of Treasure Valley. For our student-athletes who have been in the program for years now and have worked to become fast enough to compete at a higher level, the races in the Valley do not provide the best environment to achieve performances worthy of college recruitment times. As coaches, we have a responsibility to foster and maximize the potential of each kid who has the work ethic, and consistency to fulfill their collegiate sports dream. That is simply not possible with the bare minimum resources provided by the Caldwell School District. To combat this cost, coach Derek and I have taken the time to become “Minibus Certified” this year so we can simply rent a minibus and drive the team ourselves. This will help lower the cost of transportation but it will still be a significant cost with the amount of top talent we have this year. We have several kids who have the times needed to be competitive at elite-level track meets in Arizona, Oregon, and California and we hope to be able to take them.

We will no longer be allotted a 3rd coaching stipend, meaning we will not be able to hire a 3rd coach to help keep track of the kids on long-run days and assist with the JV team and fundraising efforts. Sadly, this loss can be a matter of safety for the kids as it takes an all-hands-on-deck approach to ensure none of our younger runners get dehydrated on a run or get lost.

That being said, on behalf of our community’s youth, parents, and coaching team, I would like to humbly ask you to consider if providing any amount of financial support to our Cross Country and Track team is in your budget this year for the costs we will endure beginning in August. I completely understand if the answer is no, as we all have different seasons of life when we can and can’t lend a helping hand. Please know we do not take any recurring donations for granted. We never expect recurring donations from organizations but are eternally grateful when they happen.

If you would like to know more about how you can donate (any amount at all helps), you may refer to the “How to Donate” information at the end of this newsletter. We take every opportunity we can to showcase our community partners so I have included some information on that as well.

Regardless of your ability to partner with us, we hope you enjoy the summer months and get out to embrace our beautiful Idaho state trails, lakes, and pathways!!