| Loyola
Academy Rowing Association (LARA)
The Loyola Academy
Rowing Association was established to provide an opportunity for Loyola
Academy students to learn the challenge of establishing a goal and achieving
the desired results through the challenge of rowing. The Association provides
a structured venue that gives rowers the opportunity to experience and
learn the techniques of rowing, to train vigorously, and to apply the
lessons of training and competition through the spirit of cooperation
and teamwork...
Mission Statement
Important
LARA Dates:
Next LARA Board Meeting:
Monday, January 11th, 7:00
pm,, Room TBD, Loyola Academy
- All crew parents are invited
to attend.
- Items for agenda consideration
must be submitted prior to the meeting.
Parent /Rower Open
House
Saturday, February 6th at the
Boathouse
Parent/Rower Meeting
for Spring 2010 Season
Tuesday, February 16th
Parent Mixer/Fundraiser
for LARA
Saturday, March 13th
LARA 25th Anniversary
Event
Saturday, June 19th
Highlights from Fall
Parent Meeting
Tuesday, September 15
Parents should have received
all necessary forms for this crew season...please contact Sally Dancer
at sbcdancer24@gmail.com if you did not
In addition to all the information
about the program, fees for the Fall seasonwere collected. Crew at Loyola
Academy is a club sport. After much review and discussion, the fee per
rower for the fall season will be $875. This fee covers all expenses for
the fall season including coaches' salaries, equipment, and expenses related
to regatta travel and participation. This payment may be made in full,
or in two payments: $450 due on Sept. 15, and $425 due on Oct. 15. Payments
may be made by check to Loyola Academy Rowing Association.
Please be aware that LARA offers
financial assistance in the form of fee scholarships to qualified participants.
LARA does not want any crew member to be excluded from the sport due to
financial reasons. A limited number of full and partial scholarships are
available to families that demonstrate financial need. This money is available
due to the generosity of past and present crew members, their families,
and other supporters of LARA. Each family is expected to pay as much of
the fees for their crew members as they are able. For further information
about financial aid, please contact the LARA Board present or the Head
Coach, Mr. Matthew Baldino for confidential consideration.
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From our Head Coach: 2009-2010 Season |
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September 2009
Dear Parents,
Welcome to the 2009-2010 Loyola Academy rowing season! We are excited
to have another great turnout this fall and we are pleased to offer
a full schedule of training and nationally competitive regattas
for your child. With over 60 rowers and coxswains, the growth and
success of the Loyola Academy Rowing Team is evident.
As the Director of Rowing
my goals for this program are three fold. First, that each student
athlete understands the importance of service to the community and
each other. We accomplish this through our in house service program,
"Rowers for Others". This summer we partnered with St.
Joseph's Services, a charitable organization serving the Humboldt
Park and Austin communities, to provide a Learn to Row day for children
in these impoverished areas. Our rowers paired with over 50 children
in St. Joseph's summer camp, giving them the experience of learning
the skill of rowing and socializing with them at a BBQ... it was
a great day! Our rowers also collected over $2700 in donations to
help fund the community programs so generously provided by St. Joseph's.
In the past we have raised money for the Juvenile Diabetes Fund,
volunteered at a Franciscan Soup Kitchen and we look forward to
participating in the nationally acclaimed "Rebuilding Together"
program which rebuilds homes for the less fortunate. Sharing the
Jesuit mission of service to others is an important part of our
program.
My second goal is that
each rower understands that academics are a top priority along with
service. We boast one of the best team GPA's within the Loyola Community.
I will not hesitate to sit your child if I feel that their grades
are not where they need to be. We work very closely with Loyola
Academy administration to make sure that our rowers are academically
eligible to participate.
Finally is the rowing
itself. Although this is a club sport due to the expenses associated
with the team, this is not a hobby. This is a competitive sport
and your children will be trained at a level few high school athletes
ever reach. The goal for me and this coaching staff is to train
these student athletes to compete for Midwest and National Championships.
Loyola Academy Rowing is on the verge of becoming a perennial national
powerhouse and I am going to see that it gets there.
Loyola Academy Rowing
Association (LARA) is the product of cooperation among volunteers.
The generosity and effort of our parents (and the indispensable
Mr. Tim Kane, our Faculty Moderator) make this experience for your
children possible. From parents who have the inclination and ability
to volunteer their time, we receive support that allows the entire
crew to travel, race in matching uniforms, be fed at the Regattas,
and raise money for the tools and equipment that is so important
to building nationally competitive crews. Without the logistical
and financial support of the parents and the Board, LARA could not
function.
On the other side of
the equation, we are thrilled to introduce one of the finest Scholastic
coaching staffs in the country. The staff boasts an impressive resume
of Collegiate and Scholastic National Championships, as well as
degrees from America's top universities and colleges. Each of the
coaches is well qualified to communicate the different aspects of
rowing, from land training to the water and all the way through
complex racing strategies. The coaches will instill the physiology,
techniques, tradition, and above all the work ethic that has sustained
rowing for centuries. Highly motivated and successful people are
synonymous with rowing worldwide. Our goal is to produce a spiritually-based,
scholastically superior athlete who can compete at the highest level
both academically and athletically. While coaches receive a small
stipend to cover their costs, we appreciate that our crew parents
receive nothing more than a thank you. It takes hundreds of hours
of work to coach, supervise, and organize our crew experience. The
people who fill these demanding roles do it because they want to
contribute to an activity that benefits young people in so many
ways. My staff and I can attest to how all the hard work pays off
and ask you to consider where you might be able to help.
I am looking forward
to another great season and building on our great tradition of success
in the community and classroom, as well as on the water. This year
we once again look forward to the challenge of winning a Scholastic
National Championship. The 2009 spring season ended with our Women's
Varsity Eight and Men's Junior Varsity 8 narrowly missing the finals
at Nationals. Both the Women's Second Varsity 8 and Varsity 8 finished
second at the Midwest Championships to the eventual National Champs.
The Men's JV 8 won the 2009 Midwest Championship! The Women's Second
Varsity 8 went on to finish an amazing FIFTH in the country at the
Scholastic National Championship. With continued interest, investment
and support from the Loyola Academy community and so much regional
growth, LARA is poised to become a national institution that provides
an unparalleled testing ground for young people. I hope to get the
opportunity to meet everyone and I look forward to the challenges
that lie ahead.
WELCOME and WELCOME BACK!
Sincerely,
Matthew P. Baldino, LA
Class of '93
Director of Rowing- Loyola Academy
Head Varsity Women's Coach
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