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Fort White head coach Rick Julius looks on during a game against Union County on March 4. (JORDAN KROEGER/Lake City Reporter)
FORT WHITE — Fort White’s game against Keystone Heights on Thursday won’t just be about baseball.
It’ll be for a much bigger cause.
Both schools have teamed up with Vs. Cancer, a signature fundraising campaign of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, to raise money to help fight pediatric cancer. They will continue to do so through the game on Thursday at Fort White, which begins at 6 p.m.
Fort White has raised more than $700, while Keystone Heights is already over $3,000. The goal is to bring those numbers even higher by Thursday.
Fort White head coach Rick Julius, who served on Keystone Heights’ staff more than a decade ago, thought Thursday’s game was the perfect time to bring both schools together for the fundraiser.
“Being with Keystone, I have a really good rapport with that coaching staff over there,” Julius said. “I thought when they came here it would be a good time to do it. They’re on board and they’ve done a real good job with the fundraising part of it.”
This fundraiser means a little more for Julius, who saw one of his former players from Keystone Heights, Ryan Rossano, pass away from melanoma in 2009. Keystone Heights has since named its clubhouse after Rossano.
After accidents, cancer is the second leading cause of death in children ages 1 to 14. About 1,050 children under the age of 15 are expected to die from cancer in 2022, according to cancer.org.
“I’m trying to teach these young kids about becoming young men and how life works,” Julius said. “I had a player several years ago when I was back at Keystone coaching that was lost to brain cancer, so it kind touched home with me and has a special meaning.”
Fort White will wear special gold jerseys for Thursday’s game with the cancer symbol etched on the sleeves.
You can also donate online through Fort White’s team link: https://team.curethekids.org/team/412511. Proceeds from donations will fund child life programs at a local hospital and help find a cure for pediatric brain tumors.