Flames defenseman Kevin Bite celebrates a goal in a game at the LaHaye Ice Center, headquarters for Liberty's Club Sports department that raised nearly $650,000 on Thursday's fourth annual Giving Day.
Club Sports department abundantly blessed on its fourth Giving Day
10/20/2023 3:35:00 PM | General
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As a whole, the university raised more than $4.5 million toward all of its academic departments, athletic programs, scholarship funds, as well as ministry and outreach.
It was a record-setting Giving Day for Liberty University's Club Sports department, which generated above and beyond its $400,000 fundraising goal in its fourth year of participation in the one-day university-wide "Fuel the Fire" fundraising campaign.
The 44 distinct Club Sports teams received a total of $648,424 in monetary pledges and gifts-in-kind to benefit the programs. That is nearly $300,000 more than last fall's contributions of close to $350,000.
"It's very humbling as every year God exceeds our expectations," said Ben Hughes, Club Sports' director of recruitment and the Varsity Club. "Costs everywhere are going up, so continuing to have that financial stewardship be a focus of our department helps our teams survive in this economic landscape. It is cool to see the hearts of those who want to donate to help us meet our goals."
As a whole, during its seventh annual Giving Day event, the university was granted 5,247 gifts totaling more than $4.5 million toward all of its academic departments, athletic programs, scholarship funds, and ministry and outreach.Â
The Club Sports total included several bonuses given to programs that reached individual fundraising goals, including a $15,000 pledge to the Division III men's hockey team for receiving at least 100 separate gifts; a $10,000 donation toward the gymnastics program for raising at least $8,000; a matching grant of up to $10,000 to the men's lacrosse team toward its fundraising efforts; a $5,000 gift to the women's Division II program for raising at least $10,000; a $5,000 offering to the DII men's hockey team for eclipsing $15,000 in donations; a $2,000 pledge to the shotgun team for collecting more than 100 separate donations; and a $1,000 bonus to the triathlon team for receiving more than 100 offerings.
All eight of those teams met those challenges, bringing their fundraising totals to $50,148 (DII men's hockey), $19,195 (gymnastics), $23,600 (men's lacrosse), $22,240 (DII women's hockey), $50,488 (DII men's hockey), $18,305 (shotgun), and $16,730 (triathlon). Complete totals are available online.
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"Those were all anonymous donors who have a heart for Liberty and a heart for the team they were helping to serve that day," Hughes said. "It's humbling to know that people invested their time, talents, and treasures (to Club Sports) and we as a department in the development staff want to do our best to help steward (the money raised) for our donors and supporters out there and to truly align their hearts with their investments into student-athletes, to help Train Champions for Christ."
Liberty men's lacrosse Head Coach Kyle McQuillan said the $10,000 matching grant to his team was actually the pledge from alumnus Nate Lowmaster to establish the Liberty Men's Lacrosse Scholarship Fund.
"We had two different funds, with our traditional Giving Day fund raising money for future mission opportunities and a separate fund for our new scholarship that we hope to be able to use starting next fall," McQuillan said.
The equestrian program led all Club Sports teams with a total of $183,170 received, but most of that was a generous gift-in-kind, that of a well-bred show horse donated by the family of one of its riders.
This year's Giving Day marked the first to fully implement the Ambassador Program, which allowed individuals to raise money and unlock new prizes at different levels of support.
Hughes, who also serves as head coach of the Flames' Division II men's hockey team, received an additional $1,000 bonus for his program by finishing atop the Club Sports Ambassador leaderboard for personally raising the most money ($8,875) toward the program.
Club Sports benefited from its association with other ambassadors and leaders within the university administration, including Senior Vice President for Development Brian Mentzer, Senior Associate Athletic Director for External Engagement and Development Mike Hagen, and the rest of the Flames Club.
"Everyone has been super supportive of our goals to help us support our student-athletes in Club Sports," Hughes said. "Brian Mentzer has set a great example of leadership for us, to help us grow in this area. His wisdom that he has imparted to us is that 'a good life lived is a generous life.' That's been very motivating for us."
Hughes also credited Club Sports Director of Athletics Kirk Handy, also head coach of the Flames' DI men's hockey team. That program ranked second with its $122,033 total support raised, much of which will help take the team to Finland for the second time in four years.
"Obviously, Kirk is our Giving Day champion with his influence on our department," he said. "He is a great role model for all of us in the department."
That includes, first and foremost, the 700-plus student-athletes on the 44 Club Sports teams.
"Our student-athletes have tons of influence," Hughes said. "They're all our greatest fundraisers on Giving Day and it is amazing to have their support and buy-in to help each team respectively reach their goal. They helped us with our donor relations and pledges to help our teams with specific projects that our teams want to raise money for."
He noted that several teams have designated funds raised to go specifically toward mission opportunities and providing resources, including Bibles, for sharing the Good News when teams visit Liberty's Club Sports facilities and for teams to take with them to evangelize others as they travel.
"We are always looking at how we can leverage Giving Day and peoples' financial stewardship and help steer that toward God's Kingdom and spreading the Gospel," Hughes said. "We want to be influencing the teams we're competing against in the realm of sports. That's our sphere of influence, so how can we be obedient and be the light in our sphere of influence?"
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer
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The LU Dance team was awarded a $250 bonus for submitting the best Giving Day photo from the 50 yard line at Williams Stadium.
