Fort Lee High School Athletic Booster Club: Here to Help

Members of the Fort Lee High School Athletic Booster Club are working hard behind the scenes, and their efforts should not go unnoticed.

The club was started more than 25 years ago by Janice Raimondo to help out the student-athletes at Fort Lee High School. Steve Bonardi, Sandi Klein, Diane Bonardi and Tricia McKenna are the four members of the club so far for this school year. The club’s sole priority is to help out the Fort Lee High School student-athletes, and they do this in many ways.

The cost to join the club is $10 per year, per family, and your child does not need to be an athlete to join. After joining, the club can be  beneficial for a variety of reasons.

The Booster Club is a sponsor of the annual homecoming dance, which is a blast for the kids. The event includes food, a DJ and the crowning of homecoming king and queen. This year’s dance will be on Saturday Oct. 22, a day after the football team’s final home against Englewood.

Another important and fun event comes after every season from fall through spring. It is called "Senior Appreciation Night," and it is a chance for the senior athletes to be recognized after each season they play. They receive plaques, and food and desserts are available throughout the night as well. It is also a great night for parents and coaches.

"It’s a way that the coach can show recognition to their graduating seniors and talk about each person’s accomplishments throughout the year," said Sandi Klein. "The coaches call the seniors up one at a time, and the parents are there and it’s nice."

There is also fun for the parents as the Booster Club puts on a Valentine’s Day dance for teachers and parents. Last year there was food, 50/50 raffles and a live band.

The Booster Club also helps teams financially and can help them get things they want or need, from trips to equipment.

"We’re here for the athletes, and we’re here for the coaches, and we want to make ourselves more visible," Klein said. "If coaches need bookkeeping, or if they’re going to a tournament, we can either pay for that or help defray their cost. We purchase equipment like new weights in the weight room, and we’ve purchased t-shirts for the cheerleaders when they came back and won the national competition."

In short, they are there to help as much as they can as often as they can.

"Any request that is reasonable with us, we will help them out any way we can," said Steve Bonardi. "We are here for the kids, and also the parents get a benefit of it too.”

Involvement this year is at a record high with 66 people signing up at back-to-school night alone.

Another intriguing part of the club is if you are a four-year sports person who signed up every year, then at the end of four years, you get a scholarship from the Booster Club as long as you have been on a varsity team for two years. The club is always looking for new members to help them out with planning, chaperoning and other duties.

There is no catch to this helpful organization. They are simply out there working for the wellbeing of Fort Lee High School student-athletes and their families.