Duval Public Schools (Fla.) Fundraise $300K In 5 Months To Save Sports

Take a bow, Jacksonville.

You saved sports in Duval County’s public schools.

All of them.

Duval athletic director Jon Fox will announce today that all the winter sports on the chopping block — varsity wrestling, varsity slow-pitch softball and junior varsity soccer — have been saved through fundraising efforts.

Those three join varsity tennis, cross-country and golf as sports that were going to be stopped because of School Board budget cuts.

“This has been very gratifying watching the community come forth and it has reaffirmed my faith and the faith of others that this is truly a great place,” Fox said Tuesday.

More than $300,000 was raised in five months, he said.

“There are an awful lot of people who do care,” Fox said. “There are a lot of people who believe athletics is part of the educational process in educating the total student.”

Lacrosse, a spring sport, remains the only one left that hasn’t officially secured its spot, but Fox is confident the funds will be generated.

“We have until the end of January on lacrosse,” he said. “They’ve had two fundraisers recently and while I haven’t seen the numbers, I feel very strongly we’ll get lacrosse back and be whole again. I anticipate really good news in the next month.”

More than 2,000 students have been able to continue their athletic pursuits because of the money raised.

“There are so many people that deserve credit,” Fox said. “They raised the money. All I did was put the right people together.”

He has memories of how this process has played out since its inception in mid-May. There is one that sticks with him.

“I saw three kids from different schools washing the same car one day,” Fox said. “That moment really struck me in seeing those kids work together for the common good.”

While the challenge has been met for now, Fox knows this process could start anew in 2012.

“We’re past this hurdle,” he said. “We can take a deep sigh of relief, but you look at what might be ahead. We all know the nature of the times.”