White Sox 2012 'Charities Week' sets new fundraising record
Team's Philanthropic Arm Raises Nearly $185,000 During Week; Tops Totals from Previous Three Years
Chicago White Sox Charities (CWSC) raised $184,855 during the fourth annual Charities Week, which ran from Monday, August 6 through Sunday, August 12. That dollar figure is the most CWSC has ever raised during a one-week period, besting each of the first three Charities Weeks, and brings the total amount of money raised from the four Charities Weeks to more than $677,000.
Charities Week engaged both fans attending games during the recent homestand and at home with the support of the team's broadcast partners, WSCR The Score 670 AM, Comcast SportsNet Chicago and WGN-TV. The week was highlighted by two specially-televised, in-game online auctions that featured premium prizes, including rare White Sox memorabilia, VIP experiences and special "White Sox Wives Baskets," featuring players' favorite items. The "Ultimate Auction" aired live on WGN-TV during the Saturday, August 11 game and raised $25,100 for White Sox Charities. The basket auction aired live on Comcast SportsNet Chicago during the Sunday, August 12 game and raised $14,222, nearly $5,000 more than the year before.
"Once again, Charities Week has been an incredible success thanks to the generosity of our wonderful fans," said Christine O'Reilly, executive director of Chicago White Sox Charities and White Sox senior director of community relations. "The players and staff have shown an outstanding commitment to giving back to the community, and all the fundraising efforts from this week will give support to worthy nonprofit organizations throughout the Chicagoland area."
Charities Week also included a series of community outreach events, all of which involved White Sox players and team personnel working hands on in the community. White Sox players joined active military members from the USO for lunch on Monday, August 6; players also visited pediatric patients at Comer Children's Hospital on Tuesday, August 7; they participated in a discussion about bullying and read an anti-bullying book to kids at the General Wood Boys & Girls Club in the Little Village neighborhood on Wednesday, August 8; and teamed up with the White Sox Volunteer Corps, the Salvation Army, organizers from KaBOOM! and residents of the local community to build a new playground at the Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center on Friday, August 10.
Other special fundraising events took place at the ballpark as part of Charities Week, including the Jerseys Off Our Back auction on Monday, August 6; the Joe Crede Bobblehead Sale on August 7; the ACE Team Auction held by members of the White Sox Amateur City Elite team on August 8; and the White Sox Wives Brown Bag Sale on Friday, August 10, along with regularly planned in-game charities fundraisers, such as the Sox Split Raffle, Audience Auction and Scoreboard Message program.
Proceeds from White Sox Charities Week go toward funding hundreds of Chicago-based organizations, including those leading the fight against cancer and dedicated to improving the lives of Chicago's youth through education, athletics and family support programs.