Booster clubs help students go above and beyond

Mar 6 2025

Booster clubs provide support to schools to help students in all extracurricular activities. The Quincy Booster Club and other associated booster clubs provide supplemental funding for various activities which include sports teams, arts programs, and clubs like Future Farmers of America (FFA), and more, said Quincy Booster Club board member Jen Gardner.

“As the booster club, we try to facilitate, coordinate, or support anything that is over and above the basics for a variety of groups,” she said. “The district funds the basics, we’re for the over and above, we’re there to boost, to lift.”

Gardner has been a booster club board member for three years. Two of her children have graduated from Quincy schools, and her youngest will enter Quincy High School next year. Over the years, she has been involved with multiple sports.

“Athletics is the part of the booster club that I am most knowledgeable about, but I’ve seen the impact booster clubs can make,” she said. “Especially in our community, I’ve seen so many kids who are able and who want to succeed but need a hand up.”

The booster club’s general fund is supported by fundraisers like auction dinners and other events. Gardner and eight other board members oversee the club’s general fund and act as a “checks and balances” system to ensure donations are being used appropriately.

“We want to make sure that the average person who is donating knows that the money is spent how they expect it to be,” she said.

Athletics teams from kindergarten through 12th grade fundraise and request money through the booster club. She said the club spends around $6,000 each year on youth sports from the general fund. Individual teams may also raise funds or request money for the extra things such as personalized uniforms, non-league tournament travel costs, camps and more. Right now, the Booster’s athletics funding is being used, in part, to supplement professional development for coaches.

“We were able to start offering training courses for our coaches and start earmarking some money for individual athletes,” she said. “Quincy is little, and a lot of our coaching staff is homegrown, they know their community, they know their kids, and we want to be able to invest in them to raise their skillset.”

Another active booster group supports the music program. Quincy High School spent years without a choir program, or a fundraising budget, before Kylie Youngren was hired as choir director in 2017. Youngren reinvigorated the program, and community members and parents rallied to support it.

“Years ago, there was a really strong choral program, and then it kind of languished, and then we got Kylie,” said Harriet Weber, community member and supporter of the booster club. “Our program was drought stricken for years and she comes into town like a breath of fresh air… That’s something to get behind and support.”

Money raised by donors through the Music Boosters has helped students afford travel for competitions in places like Silverwood Theme Park and Disneyland.

This year, students were also able to attend the Seattle Opera. For most, it was their first time seeing an opera, and for many it was their first time seeing Seattle.

“Our tickets were free, but the buses were about $2,000,” Youngren said. “With our Music Booster funds, we were able to do a charter bus and have about 30 students attend the Seattle Opera, which is a great experience just to broaden their horizons.”

Webber said she’s excited to see the choir out in the community, performing at booster fundraisers like The Bagpipe Bash held at the Quincy Valley Historical Society & Museum.

Community partnerships like those with the museum fulfill the school’s mission, Youngren said. and, they happen thanks to donors like Weber.

Booster members like Weber and parents help lighten the load on teachers, Youngren said.

“We couldn't have our programs run at the capacity they do without this arm-in-arm link, without these parent and community volunteers who have been willing to be really generous, not only with their money but with their time,” she said.

FFA is another group with an active booster group. With around 345 students involved in FFA at Quincy High School, costs can be high, said Rod Cool, FFA advisor and agriculture teacher. Cool has taught agriculture in Washington state for nearly 40 years. QHS FFA sends between 20 and 35 students to the state competition each year, and over 40 students are expected to present animals at the fair this summer. While the school district covers competition trips, booster clubs, like the Quincy FFA Alumni Association, help purchase animals and cover the out-of-pocket costs during trips.

“To have a beef project, it costs $2,700 up front before the kid even gets to fair,” Cool said. “[Booster clubs] give scholarships to our seniors in different amounts, and they also help when we go on contest trips by assisting with additional costs. They take care of our kids really well. It helps us as teachers because we don’t have to spend so much of our time fundraising. We can focus on helping our kids excel.”

Community can attend FFA alumni board meetings, shared on the group’s Facebook page, and visit the students at the fair, where they sell the animals, they've raised.

“You can see the kid that raised it and talk to the kid that raised it,” Cool said. “People who care about where their food comes from should be buying those kinds of animals.”

The Quincy Booster Club meetings are also open to the public, and Gardner said she encourages community members to attend meetings and get involved in other ways.

“I would love for them to get out and come watch the games. Learn the kids’ names, follow the different teams and the booster club page on social media,” she said. “It makes a world of difference to our numbers and our performance.”

Gardner emphasized the importance of extracurricular activities, stating, “Extracurricular activities make such a difference in the kids’ life. It helps them build confidence, try something new and learn how to stick with something through challenges,”. She added, “Every coach, every teacher, they always go into their own pocket, and we try to help with those costs.”

One of the Booster’s largest fundraisers is the annual Back the Jacks night. This year’s fundraiser will be on Friday, May 2, with details to be announced soon.

To learn more about the booster club or to get involved, community members can reach the board by emailing quincyboosterclub@outlook.com.