Four Peters Girls to Play in 'Hoops for Endure Marathon'

Supporting local families combating cancer and other detrimental illnesses, St. Thomas More School will be hosting an inaugural day and a half “Hoops Help Endure Marathon,” March 11 and 12.

The first-year marathon, orchestrated by the eighth-grade girls basketball team, will feature competitive matches from the boy's and girl's basketball teams in grades three through eight, alongside encouragement from the school’s cheerleaders and an entertaining performance from the Little Dribblers — first and second graders who will perform dazzling dribbling maneuvers during halftime on Friday.

Endure Coordinator Gail Facchiano said the upcoming marathon is essential in promoting the fund, and will hopefully spark enthusiasm in the school’s youngsters.

“We’re hoping to get the younger kids excited about basketball,” said Facchiano, whose twin girls Alexia and Giavanna, and Peters' Andrea Bryan and Elizabeth McElhaney, are a part of St. Thomas More's eighth-grade girls basketball team.

According to Facchiano, each basketball team challenged an opposing team within the area to compete for marathon bragging rights.

“Every grade has a different school coming,” said Facchiano. Facchiano said a total of 12 games will be played with 12 different schools attending; the eighth-grade girls will face Mt. Lebanon's traveling team.

“We wanted to get everyone involved,” said Facchiano. “You can only pull enough money from your own school.”

Aside from generous corporate donations from local establishments, as well as admission prices and concessions, various fundraising efforts during the marathon will be made. Sales from "Pink" Boutique homemade crafts, as well as t-shirts, four $5 raffle tickets to one Pittsburgh Penguins home game and various $1 basketball dedications will be sold at the marathon.

Facchiano said half-court shot competitions throughout the marathon will also aid donations. The eighth-grade girls basketball team’s compassion for their beloved school Secretary Donna Weiss, who was diagnosed with breast cancer, roused the team’s charitable pursuit.

“She’s the reason,” said Facchiano. “She’s the school secretary — the first face you see when coming to the school, and all the kids love her.”

The team’s efforts conceptualized last spring, when they began wearing pink uniforms to support Weiss's condition, according to Facchiano.

Upon proposing the charitable idea to the school’s principal, the team was prompted to compose a detailed proposal over the summer, spanning nine pages, to outline their plan.

“To make sure they were serious, the principal said they must get the entire school involved and raise all the money themselves,” said Facchiano.

Beginning this season wearing pink and purple uniforms, the eighth-grade girls persisted in promoting their effort throughout the school year.

“They’ve been advertising all year long,” said Facchiano.

The team’s off-court endeavors coincided with a dominant, playoff-bound season. The St. Thomas More Athletic Association President Julie Seavy believes the girls’ activities helped mesh the team’s on-court performance.

“They’ve had a very successful season this year,” said Seavy. Alongside on-court success, the team’s community service initiatives have captivated community interest.

“It’s very impressive eight girls are able to take something like this and make it their own to benefit the community," she said. "It speaks highly of the caliber of our students.”

What began as a selfless effort to lift the school secretary’s spirit, the team has laid the groundwork for a charitable foundation promising years of support toward local families coping with life-threatening illnesses.

“Everyone knows someone whose has or had cancer,” said Facchiano. “We are trying to reach out to all families.”

Currently, volunteers are being accepted to fill a variety of marathon positions. To learn more about Friday and Saturday's marathon, or to volunteer, contact Gail Facchiano at gamut@aol.com.