Souderton is using Saturday’s game against William Allen to raise funds for Special Olympics. It is the final of several community service projects the Indians have been involved in this season. Check back for a complete game story of Saturday’s SOL Featured Game, which is sponsored by Millennium Administrators.
Life changed dramatically in the Wetzler household in April of 2011 when Kyle Wetzler, then 14 years old, was diagnosed with Type 1 Juvenile Diabetes.
“Definitely, it was a shock,” said junior Libby Wetzler, Kyle’s older sister. “You don’t think about diabetes as a really hard disease, but it really does turn your life upside down.
“You have to pay attention to things that you normally wouldn’t. There was a lot of learning involved. It was a huge adjustment in the beginning, just the newness of it.
“You can’t go into the pantry and get something to eat and just eat it. He has to count the carbs, he has to know how much insulin to take. He has to shoot that into his body and check for blood sugar.”
According to Wetzler, there’s a certain amount of guilt associated with eating things that are off limits for her younger sibling.
“You feel bad for him because it’s so different,” she said. “Initially, he was always counting carbs, so we would start to count carbs.”
If handling the diabetes wasn’t enough, Kyle Wetzler also was diagnosed with celiac disease, a disease that causes the body to react to gluten.
“That actually has a much bigger effect on our family’s diet,” Wetzler said. “We have a lot of gluten-free stuff, and that has had a huge impact food-wise.”
In recent years, Wetzler’s basketball team had participated in a Walk for Autism. She suggested to coach Lynn Carroll that this year the team might want to consider the Walk to Cure Diabetes. Carroll loved the idea, and the players rallied around Wetzler, walking with her family and raising $1,645.
“It was great,” Wetzler said. “They were definitely there for me and my family. Everybody was so supportive. I have great teammates, and they are there every step of the way. They’re very supportive of anyone that needs their support.”
The Indians community service didn’t stop with participating in the diabetes walk. Some of the players also participated in the Sleep-Out for Hunger, which included creating sleeping quarters out of a cardboard box to simulate what it would be like to be homeless.
The squad also traveled to Conshohocken and donated their time to an organization called Cradles to Crayons. One of the most meaningful parts of the day was spent creating bags for specific children.
“If their birthday was coming up, we were able to pick a present out of the toys that were donated, and we wrapped it and made a card,” senior Jackie Krevolin said. “There were 12 of us that went, and we were partnered up with one or two other people, and each group probably got through four names, but there was still a huge stack that needed to be gone through.”
“They had a great time,” Carroll said. “I think it’s as direct of an impact as you can have. You’re looking at these things, and you’re picturing this kid that’s going to get the stuff. It was great. It was one of the best community service things we’ve done.”
Part of the day at Cradles to Crayons was also spent sorting through the donations the organization had received.
“People are bringing in donations everyday, and they have to first be sorted,” Krevolin explained. “We actually got to go through clothes and choose what would be wearable for the children and what wouldn’t. After that, it’s sorted by size and put in bins.
“We went through toys to see which would be useful and weren’t broken or too old for them to play with.”
What stood out about the day, according to Krevolin, was just how many needy children there are in the Philadelphia area.
“There was a huge stack of papers and bags for children,” she said. “There were so many that needed to be picked up.
“It made you grateful for what we actually do have, and we have each other as a team. It was just a great experience. We got to know each other better. We see each other in school, but this was a different environment. Even when we were sorting through the clothes, we could talk. It was fun, but at the same time, it was a learning experience, and it shows what we’re each like as a person and what we’re like as a team.”
Wetzler also acknowledged that it was a special experience.
“It gives you a different perspective,” she said. “You donate clothes, you donate stuff, and this is an organization that really takes those donations, and you can tell it’s being given to people who need it.
“There’s a lot of personalization too. There are care bags and birthday gifts. They really do care, and that was the most profound thing. You think of donations as just giving stuff away, but this is being put to good use.”
The Indians are using Saturday’s non-league game against William Allen as yet another opportunity to give back. This year’s Special Olympics will be held at Souderton for the first time, and with the need for funds to support the event, the Indians decided to chip in and help.
“My assistant Josh Klimovich came up with the idea of a night where one of the focuses was to get some money to use as a start-up fund,” Carroll said.
Special Olympics athletes from the community will also be recognized prior to the game on a day that will be about a whole lot more than basketball.
Just the facts:
This year’s record: Souderton 5-5 SOL (8-8 overall) William Allen 0-10 Lehigh Valley Conference (0-16 overall)
Last game: Souderton 65, Hatboro-Horsham 40 (Carley Kendall – 26 points, Liz Mower – 11 points, Libby Wetzler – 10 points)
Parkland 50, William Allen 29
Souderton
Projected starters:
#5 – Liz Mower (5-7, Sr., Guard)
#11 – Gabby McAndrews (5-7, Sr., Guard)
#14 – Carley Kendall (5-11, Sr., Forward)
#21 – Libby Wetzler (5-10, Jr., Forward)
#25 – Bianca Picard (5-5, Soph., Guard)
The rest of the Indians:
#1 – Jackie Krevolin (5-3, Sr., Guard)
#3 – Allison Gallagher (5-8, Soph., Guard)
#10 – Katie O’Connor (5-2, Soph., Guard)
#22 – Caitlyn Steinly (5-5, Sr., Guard)
#31 – Sarah Derstein (5-10, Fr., Forward)
#33 – Hailey Kaunert (5-9, Soph., Forward)
- Log in to post comments
