Percent of money spent at Nob Hill Foods will be donated back to
athletic funds
HOLLISTER
The San Benito High School athletic department has teamed up with the Nob Hill/Raley’s corporation and its “Quality of Life” program to help offset some of the proposed budget cuts to the school’s athletic fund.
The program, approved on March 17, outfits shoppers with a “Quality of Life” card, which can then be used at any Raley’s, Bel Air or Nob Hill Foods. A percentage of each dollar spent while shopping will then be donated directly back into the school’s athletic fund.
The more money spent at either grocery store, the more money generated for the school’s athletics.
“Our hope is that, going into the school year (in the fall), to have the majority of parents who are Nob Hill shoppers to be registered,” San Benito Athletic Director Tod Thatcher said. “We’re just trying to get them out to as many people as we can.”
The “Quality of Life” cards can only be picked up at the high school, and there is no fee for usage. After activating them online, however, the card can then be used at any Raley’s, Bel Air or Nob Hill Foods.
Thatcher even said his mother is generating money to the SBHS athletic fund while shopping in South Lake Tahoe.
The athletic director also noted that the program will operate on a sliding percentage scale, with $300 used as the initial price threshold. With monthly shopping totals under $300, the “Quality of Life” program will donate one percent back to the school. But as monthly shopping totals increase above $300, the percentages donated back will increase as well.
“So the more you spend in a month, the more the percentage goes up,” Thatcher said.
The program is just another way of raising funds for the athletic department. Recently, the school set up a donation fund known as “Team Baler: Balers Supporting Baler Athletes,” where community members can donate directly to the school’s athletic program. Donations can be made to either the school or the Baler Backers Athletic Organization, a 501 (c)3 nonprofit.
The fundraising efforts are in light of a $1.8 million districtwide budget cut that was announced in February, which included a proposed cut of $100,000 from the athletic fund. While the San Benito High School District trustees have already approved most of the proposed cuts to fill the $1.8 million shortfall, cutbacks regarding athletics have been tabled at the last few board meetings.
Thatcher said the budget cuts are expected to be finalized at the district’s next meeting on April 14, however.
For more information about the “Quality of Life” program, contact Becky Doty at (831) 637-5831, ext. 351, or by e-mail at: bd***@sb***.us
