TOUCHDOWN
Patriots foundation donates $50,000 to Clippers
CUMBERLAND — It takes a lot to bring a high school football head coach near to tears, yet Cumberland’s Josh Lima had a very good reason to become emotional.
Tears of pure joy would probably be streaking down your face if you too had learned word about a substantial cash influx that’s slated to come your way, courtesy of the New England Patriots.
“With a donation like that, there’s so much you can do with it,” said Lima.
The bridge between hoping to make program upgrades and actually having the financial means to make those desires come true became clearer on Wednesday afternoon. With Patriots Executive Director of Community Affairs Andre Tippett on hand, the CHS gridders were officially presented a $50,000 grant that was made possible by the Patriots Foundation’s Super Bowl LIII raffle.
Practice had already started when per Lima’s orders, the Cumberland players took a knee around Tippett, a member of the Patriots and Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The Patriots Super Bowl ring he was wearing glistened in the sun. After spending five minutes talking about the value of football, Tippett handed off a jumbo-sized check to Lima – a check that featured quite a few zeros on it.
A few years back, Lima submitted a grant proposal and received good news through USA Football. To the best of the coach’s knowledge, the grant from the Patriots was the result of a random selection process of schools.
“I didn’t ask questions,” said Lima, who received official confirmation a few weeks back when he answered the phone and on the other end was Josh Kraft, President of the New England Patriots Foundation.
“Initially, they said they were going to make something special happen, but we really didn’t know what it was,” said Lima. “When Josh Kraft called, that’s when he told me what the donation was.”
In the public school sector, Lima isn’t afforded the luxury of walking up to administrators and asking if there’s money in the budget to purchase specific items. We could be talking about requests ranging from a new tackling sled to video equipment, or something even more pressing like helmets and shoulder pads.
If you’re Cumberland or any other school of a similar financial circumstance, the opportunity to make upgrades may happen once every two seasons – if that often. You have to hold tight, wait your turn, and pray that what’s currently at your disposal is able to survive the wear and tear.
“At some point, they’ll say the equipment is outdated and needs to be improved. That burden on a school system is tremendous, especially when you’re talking about a program where you’re carrying over 100 kids spread over three levels,” said CHS Principal Adolfo Costa.
Sometimes, items on the wish list are made possible through the generous efforts of parents. Lima shared the story of how one time, the camera the Clippers use to film on gamedays decided to break down during the middle of the contest. A football parent hustled to the nearest Best Buy and before Lima knew it, Cumberland was back in the footage business.
Thanks to the generosity extended by the Patriots, the Clippers now have the funds to buy a second one-man tackling sled and helmets, among other pertinent items.
“I’m sure it will go fast once we start purchasing stuff,” said Lima.
“These are kids who are definitely worthy of those improvements and any support that we can get is absolutely appreciated,” Costa, who was joined at the practice field for Wednesday’s check presentation along with Assistant Principal Pat Sullivan and Athletic Director Matt Campanelli.
None of the current Cumberland football players were alive when Tippett played his last down with the Patriots in 1993. Thanks to junior tight end/defensive lineman Thomas Berger, who is the Clippers’ resident expert when it comes to football history, a lot of his teammates were well versed in Tippett’s accomplishments prior to being in his presence on Wednesday.
“We do talk about the Patriots and why they are so successful. It’s the NFL and everyone has good players. They just do the little things better than everyone else,” said Lima.
With $50,000 now at the program’s disposal, the Clippers can go about shoring up areas that transform those aforementioned little things into noticeable strengths.
“This is something help,” said Lima.
that’s
a
huge