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Alpena Schools, Teams Raise Money for Weaver Family

A tragic accident occurred just a couple weeks ago, as Gerald and Tara Weaver were driving to Sault Ste. Marie and tragically passed away on their way to watch their son play in a basketball game. The game was stopped at halftime.

Since then, Alpena High School wanted to offer their help to the weaver family in wake of this tragedy. They donated over $600, and Thunder Bay Junior High donated over $230, while staff each chipped in on their own.

“As a community, we want to come together to support Escanaba, support that family, and just a horrible, horrible tragedy to everyone,” said Alpena High School Principal Romeo Bourdage.

After the school gave its donations, each of the boys’ and girls’ basketball teams continued the generosity last week. For coaches and parents, they wanted to offer their support in the face of an unimaginable situation.

“You have to drive everywhere to see your kid play, and everyone can relate to that family because we’ve all driven the two hours, the three hours, or an hour, it’s not a 20 minute drive, so parents are driving one to two hours twice a week to see their kids play, and it’s just tragic,” said Alpena Girls’ Basketball Coach Laura Dubey.

The girls’ team started a fundraiser last week thanks to senior captain Marah Wisniewski, who acknowledged that basketball becomes insignificant quickly in a situation like this.

“Having something happen so tragically, and having everybody show support of it was very moving to see, and I feel like it was a way to show that it’s more than basketball, like it’s more supportive than that,” said Wisniewski.

The grand total raised by all of the parties exceeded over $3,100, and the school community is humbled by everyone’s generosity.