Edison Community College...
March 17, 2012

The Edison Theater was rocking Thursday night as the college held its third-annual Charger 300 fundraiser to support the basketball, volleyball and baseball teams. A record-setting crowd of more than 400 people were on hand for the reverse raffle, which awarded one lucky ticket holder the $10,000 grand prize. 

The event helped to bring in approximately $20,000 for the athletics program through the sale of tickets and a silent and live auction. More than $14,000 in prize money was awarded out to winning ticket holders, including the grand prize winner, Buckeye Charter Bus Company, who generously donated half of the prize money back to the school. 

“We had a tremendous outpouring of support for this year’s Charger 300 event,” said Chip Hare, athletic director. “The money we raise through this event helps to offset many of the costs that our athletic teams incur throughout the year and provides a lot of opportunities to our athletes that they wouldn’t normally have, such as participating in post-season tournaments.” 

This year, a live auction was added to the evening’s activities, with items ranging from box seats at Dayton Dragons games to a landscaping prize featuring four hours of work from the newly formed Edison Club Baseball Team. Nearly 20 items were also added to a silent auction donated by area businesses and community members, which together with the live auction helped to bring in another $4,000 to the total collected. 

Former University of Dayton basketball star Derrick Dukes served as the evening’s emcee, calling out tickets and joking with attendees throughout the night as the remaining tickets dwindled down to the final few. 

“We really have a lot of people to thank both in the community and right here at Edison,” said Hare. “This is the first year we’ve been able to sell out the event in advance and the record turnout shows that we’ve got something really great to continue building on.” 

Edison’s teams compete in the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference and are members of the National Junior College Athletic Association Division II. Edison’s athletic programs provide a unique opportunity to athletes who may have found difficulty participating at larger schools due to financial reasons and family commitments. 

Tickets are already on sale for next year’s event, which will be held on March 14, 2013. Information will continue to be updated on the website at www.edisonohio.edu/charger300