FFA (Future Farmers of America) held their second annual Cover the Court on February 15 during halftime at the Lady Eagles basketball game against the Strafford Indians.
Cover the Court is a stuffed animal drive put on by the FFA chapter here at Fair Grove. Stuffed animals are thrown onto the court at half time and then collected by FFA officers. Cole Johnston, one of the FFA advisors, explained, “The event is to gather a large number of unused stuffed animals. Those stuffed animals are donated to Mercy Children’s Hospital to be given out to sick children while they are in the hospital.”
Johnston added, “I had seen a news report where this was done at a hockey game in Canada. I also liked this and wanted to do it as my own son Maverick spent some time at the St. Louis Children’s Hospital in the spring of 2020 and received a few stuffed animals while we were there from St. Jude during our stay.”
“My wife also was a nurse at Mercy for many years and saw how these stuffed animals helped bring ease to children staying in the hospital for any period of time. I was extremely worried that this event would be a total flop last year, but was delighted that we gathered and donated a total of 354 stuffed animals,” Johnston continued.
Last year Cover the Court brought in 305 stuffed animals. Johnston stated that this year’s goal was to collect over 500 stuffed animals. FFA president, Alyssa Snitker (12), stated, “This event is important because it’s a great way to give back to our community. These kids who are in the hospital long term can get down really easy or be scared. Giving them a stuffed animal can really just help them feel a whole lot better.”
Snitker and Johnston were both the main planners for this event. They picked the date, made fliers and even contacted Strafford to get their support for this event.
FFA assistant sentinel, Bryce Teriet (10), explained, “Cover the Court is important because it allows us to have a fun night while still doing something good for the children in the hospital.”
Overall, FFA was able to collect 148 stuffed animals. The stuffed animals were then donated to Mercy Children’s Hospital and given out to kids there.