CHARLOTTE, N.C.- In lieu of the normal secret Santa gift giving practice that so many organizations, teams and groups of friends participate in during the holiday season, eight Queens University of Charlotte athletics programs opted to make donations to the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation.
Organizing the effort was Jim Fritz, the head coach of the men’s lacrosse team. “I saw Charlotte Toys for Tots was down 40,000 gifts this year and that really gave me the idea to start this effort.”
The eight teams who participated, the men’s and women’s tennis teams, men’s and women’s golf teams, men’s and women’s lacrosse teams, volleyball and cheerleading, were able to collect over 200 toys for donation, in just a short amount of time. Fritz invited his fellow coaches to join the men’s lacrosse team in this effort on December 1 and the final donation was made on December 18.
“The teams and Cherie Swarthout, assistant athletics director, really stepped up with short notice and helped make this happen, “ said coach Fritz. “After speaking with the other head coaches and Cherie, I think next year with more time we can look to even make more of an impact.”