Pink Arrow XV Goes Off Without a Hitch
Justin Scott - Sports Reporter
6 September 2022
Outside of a little midday heat, the 15th annual Pink Arrow event at Lowell High School was as close to perfect as could be.
There were four events that took place over the course of the day. Both schools that participated (Middleville Thornapple Kellogg in football and soccer, and Grand Rapids Catholic Central in volleyball) wore pink socks to join in on the spirit of the event. One of the first events was a volleyball scrimmage against Grand Rapids Catholic Central. MHSAA rules state the scrimmages are “for instruction more than competition” and prohibits schools from publicizing the results of said scrimmages. That scrimmage took place on the outdoor court at the stadium as it has in past years.
Up the hill at the LHS Athletics North Campus was the soccer stadium where varsity soccer lost 6-3 to Middleville TK. The JV team played after the game. While the different locations for events were new this year, volunteers on golf carts made travel between the events that much easier.
The annual survivor’s parade started at 6:00pm at the stadium as LHS athletes and the marching band led the survivors of cancer down the winding path to the stadium and around the track to applause.
Five sets of honorees made from one of the largest honoree groups ever at a Pink Arrow game as band members joined the usual honoree groups from soccer, volleyball, football, and cheerleading.
The honoree stories were powerful including that of Sophia Campos, Lowell cheerleader that was cheering in honor of her mom Lisa, a breast cancer survivor. Another cheerleader, Lannie West cheered in memory of Matt Kooistra who recently lost his battle with lung cancer. The entire Kooistra family walked with Lannie during the honoree ceremony. Soccer player Hunter Chick played in honor of his grandma Pat Fedewa who survived bone cancer and was able to walk with Hunter in their ceremony. Volleyball player Bri Huisman played in honor of her Grandma Daly who survived breast cancer. Over 100 honorees whose lives were shaped in some way or another by cancer, and each announcement stirred emotions in all who participated or spectated.
“They want to represent that person well, because they know the pain and the suffering that family has gone through, they want to try and bring them a moment of joy, and they want to give them an extra special moment on that night,” Lowell Football head coach Jacob Henige told WOOD TV8 after the game.
Another tradition that continued this year was all four Lowell sports teams; football, soccer, cheerleading, and volleyball, got special custom pink jerseys with the names of their loved ones on the back. Jerseys came from RaizedUp, a local apparel provider co-founded by LHS graduate Jason Welsch. April McClure and Fans in Stands who helped organize t-shirt sales and the event this year, also put names on the back for some jerseys as well.
The crowds at this year’s Pink Arrow were also larger than recent Pink Arrows. Two years of COVID-19 impacted games in 2020 and 2021 gave way as society adapts to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, there were no restrictions on the event and the stands were packed at LHS. The Lowell side was full and fans flooded to the extra bleachers on the north end of the stadium, sat on the hills, and a few even had to sit on the other side of the stadium where the Middleville spectators were.
Restaurant row was back this year as area businesses like Keiser’s Kitchen, Main Street BBQ, Heidi’s, and Kona Ice set up in front of the football stadium. Themselves along with the Lowell concession stand helped add to the enjoyment of the event.
In the nightcap, the varsity football game against Middleville Thornapple Kellogg, Lowell won 49-6 in convincing fashion.
Organizers of the event projected that 5,000 Pink Arrow t-shirts were sold thus far, nearly going through their entire inventory.
“They know that what is raised today will be paid out in the community, to people within our school system, that are walking a cancer journey,” added Teresa Beachum, longtime volunteer with Pink Arrow who spoke with WZZM 13.
Over two millions dollars had been raised over 15 years, it was announced at the game.
