Yelm community rallies to try and save sports programs

YELM, Wash. — “They are getting ready for this season and for it to be turned upside down and say ‘hey you might not have a season to play,’ it’s heartbreaking,” said Yelm High School head football coach Jason Ronquillo, laying out the reality for many student-athletes after Yelm Community Schools this week announced drastic cuts for sports programs, in order to deal with a projected $8.2 million budget shortfall.

The district is cutting all high school and middle school C-teams – which are development teams with mostly freshmen, feeding into the JV level.

We talked with some incoming Yelm High School freshmen ready to play on the C-team, now just realizing their season may be lost.

“I was looking forward to being able to play football here at Yelm High School and to hear the news that it’s going to get cancelled, I just feel disappointed,” said football player Brandon Boyd.

Yelm Middle School is set to lose it’s football program.

Varsity and junior varsity sports will continue.

But even getting athletes to the games will be difficult, because the district also cut funding for transportation.

“Basically, if you sign up for athletics and you make the team, that family is responsible for getting their athletes to and from those athletic events,” said Ronquillo.

The coach and another parent have come up with a gameplan as co-founders of Total Sports Development, a regional youth sports organization now raising money to help save C-team sports in the district.

12:57:45… “this is step one let’s fund C-team sports this year step 2 is going to be what does the future look like and how do we continue to take care of this community to where we don’t die on the vine,” said TSD president Phillip Ogle.

The organization is trying to raise $50,000 in about a week.

That money will not pay for transportation or help Yelm Middle School sports.

The school district declined KIRO 7′s request for an interview.

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