The winter sports season at Yorktown is in full swing. The beginning of the hockey and basketball seasons have sparked excitement throughout the school, and students’ spirits are high. During the holiday season, there are many ways to support your favorite Yorktown teams. With winter break coming up, the perfect way to do this is through our club crew and hockey teams, who sold wreaths and trees. These fundraisers were open to both students and other members of the community.

As an integral part of the Arlington community, our school’s sports have found support throughout the local neighborhoods. 

“I sold a lot of [the wreaths] to my relatives and my friends, and I also sold some to my neighbors,” junior Mav Morris said.

Morris is a member of our school’s crew team, which has a storied history participating in some of the most competitive regattas in the country. 

This year, rowers held a wreath sale from October 20 until November 13. This fundraiser is crucial to the crew program, as it supports the team for the upcoming season. 

“The money will be used for equipment, such as new [rowing machines] and boats, and it will also be used for when we travel to different places to race in regattas,” Morris said.

The Yorktown Ice Hockey Club’s Christmas tree sale, in partnership with the Optimist Club, is held annually in the Knights of Columbus parking lot, just one block away from our school. 

This sale is a staple part of the holidays in our community, helping to fund many Arlington sports teams and other organizations. Every year, players from all three high schools participate as volunteers to raise money for their athletic programs. 

The Optimist Club of Arlington is the local branch of an international organization, which works to help youth in communities. They aim to raise money in support of programs like sports and clubs all across the nation. 

Because the Optimist Club’s target demographic is youth around the world, they offer various volunteer opportunities for high school students in Arlington. Many of their volunteers are Yorktown students. 

Both of these sales ended up bringing in enough money to support their respective sports programs. The wreath sale, which ended on November 13, was successful in raising funds for our crew team. The Optimist tree sale ended recently when the organizers sold out of all of the trees. This is wonderful news for our hockey program, who reaped the benefits of this sale.

To support Yorktown sports next year, look out for the crew team’s wreath sale beginning in October 2024. The Optimist tree sale typically opens the week of Thanksgiving, so keep an eye out for that as well. Both of these sales are an excellent way to support local youth led sports teams.