By Keith Brake
Montezuma Magazine Editor
You didn’t think we’d go right from the end of softball and baseball into football, did you?
Well, we are – for a week at least.
Five Montezuma students – one football player and four cheerleaders – will participate in the 52nd annual Shrine Bowl Classic on Saturday, July 20, at the UNIDome in Cedar Falls.
The five are football player Garrett Watts and cheerleaders Emily Jo James, Hayley Burnett, Karlee Knust and Tayler Wickham.
Each July for many years, 92 football players from around Iowa have been involved with this event, and more and more cheerleaders have been added as the years roll on.
Over the years, $3.8 million has been raised for Shriners’ Children.
During the week lead-up to the game, players and cheerleaders prepare for the game, build friendships and learn about the impact they can have on less fortunate kids.
A highlight is a mini-camp mid-week where players and cheerleaders meet with hospitalized children on the UNIDome field to play games and share stories.
On Friday evening, participants and families are celebrated at an Honors Banquet.
On Saturday morning, players, cheerleaders, coaches, Shriners and the Shrine Bowl King and Queen, are involved in a big parade leading up to the 4 p.m. football game.
Money raised by the various events goes to Shriners’ childrens orthopedic hospitals and burn centers in the midwest, and to a fund used to transport patients to and from hospitals and clinics.
Fans can attend the game. Tickets are $12, and need to be ordered online.
Tickets for the banquet may yet be available. For more information, go to the game’s website at iowashrinebowl.org.
Garrett Watts is a 6-2, 170-pound wide receiver from Montezuma, who just last week finished his senior season for the Braves’ baseball team. He’ll be playing for the South team in the bowl game.