The Greater Middlesex Conference swimming community is once again pooling its resources to make a splash for The Marisa Tufaro Foundation.
Hundreds of student-athletes from the league’s high school teams will become “Marisa’s Minnows” as part of an annual conference-wide fundraiser with all donations collected benefiting the nonprofit.
Since its inception five years ago, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has made a profound impact, donating more than a quarter of a million dollars to assist pediatric patients and underserved children throughout the greater Middlesex County area.
The nonprofit has also donated thousands of toys, nonperishable food items, winter jackets, baby supplies, and other items upon which it has placed no monetary value.
In addition, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has awarded $26,500 in college academic scholarships to exceptional Middlesex County high school students who advance the nonprofit’s mission. Former swimmers Emma Broggi of Piscataway and Libby Dobrzynski of Sayreville, who graduated from their respective high schools in 2019, are among past recipients of Marisa Tufaro Foundation Greater Middlesex Conference Student-Athlete Scholarships.
The GMC swimming community has played an enormous role in the foundation’s success, generating more than $25,000 for the nonprofit through its first three fundraisers, while simultaneously heightening awareness about the foundation’s mission.
This year’s GMC swimming event, dubbed “Practice for a Purpose,” will be held Dec. 10 at North Brunswick Township High School. Previous fundraisers were conducted at the Raritan Bay Area YMCA, which generously donated its facility and staff to host the event.
Teams will be assigned lanes and pool times, with each using its opportunity in the water to either conduct a formal practice, to work on different strokes, to increase stamina or to simply have fun in the season-opening event. The participants will collectively swim inordinate miles of laps.
CarrieAnn Egan-Ragavas, the head coach of the host high school’s swimming program, said the North Brunswick school-community “breathes helping others” and having the fundraiser at her pool “feels like it’s home.”
“It’s about building the community, building awareness and being a part of something that is bigger than you,” Egan-Ragavas said of participating in the event. “I talk to the kids about the foundation in general. We go into a classroom and I educate them on what they are actually ‘Practicing for a Purpose’ for. I show them (The Marisa Tufaro Foundation) video, so they understand why they are there and who they are helping. I think it means a lot to the kids that they know what their (fundraising) is going toward.”
Egan-Ragavas said participating in the event is about more than raising money for charity, adding “it’s important that we don’t lose sight of doing things for humanity.”
“It’s about giving their time, their thoughts, their effort, and their empathy toward others,” Egan-Ragavas said. “The kids are so eager to be a part of this. It just resonates a lot about how much it means to the swimmers. Swimmers are the kinds of kids who are very humble. They are such well-balanced kids, and when they see something like this come their way, they can’t wait to be a part of it.”
Bobby Savulich, the most decorated swimmer in GMC history, who graduated in 2005 from Saint Joseph High School, where he was an 18-time high school All-American and set state records in the 100-meter freestyle, 200-meter freestyle, 200-yard freestyle and 200-yard individual medley, praised the conference for rallying together to help children in need.
“It’s exciting to see that GMC swimmers are leaders, not just in the pool, but out of the pool, bringing the community together and helping this great charity,” said Savulich, a six-time All-American and 13-time Big Ten Champion at the University of Michigan who narrowly missed qualifying for the Olympics.
“I feel like there’s definitely some great schools that compete in the GMC and it’s wonderful to see them coming together for a greater cause. At the end of the day, sports are a fantastic way to compete, but when everything’s over, it’s great to come together as one and help our community out.”
Metuchen High School Athletics Director John Cathcart, the GMC swimming committee chair who collaborates with all the conference swimming coaches to orchestrate the fundraiser, said “the generosity of the kids and the dedication to their sport and to helping others is just something I don’t even think you can put into words.”
“Those kids will do almost anything for anybody. They are that dedicated. I know how giving and caring our (Metuchen) kids are, and I’m sure every one of those kids on the other (GMC) teams feel the same way. It’s a very tight-knit group. They are all such good friends. It just makes for a really pleasant atmosphere whenever they get together and whenever they swim together.”
The “Marisa’s Minnows” slogan that the conference swimming community adopted for its fundraiser is more than just a literary device.
The clever use of alliteration for the event’s title is apropos as the carefully chosen words reflect what transpires inside the pool, where competitors from rival programs swim together, as minnows will in large shoals, for a common cause.
Cathcart said coaches conference-wide have been and remain committed to the annual fundraiser.
“I think what really helps, not only with the camaraderie (among the swimmers), is the coaches are thoroughly behind it,” Cathcart said. “They feel excited about it. It comes down to the participation and commitment of all the coaches.”
Several of Marisa Tufaro’s former classmates have participated as Marisa’s Minnows in previous “Practice for a Purpose” events.
Marisa Tufaro, who would have graduated last year from Edison High School, was born with hypoplastic left-heart syndrome, a complex cardiac defect which required six open-heart surgeries. Marisa developed two life-threatening conditions that necessitated a heart transplant. The transplant was supposed to extend her life, but tragically cut it short when a postoperative complication developed into a rare form of cancer (post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder) to which Marisa succumbed in 2017 following a valiant battle. She was just 13 years old.
Despite being hospitalized for more than two years and maintaining hundreds of doctor’s appointments, Marisa was an honor roll student involved in myriad extracurricular activities who lived a vibrant life that inspired.
Metuchen swim coach Jim Thomas said “Practice for a Purpose” enables Marisa’s parents, Greg, a former sportswriter with the Home News Tribune who covered high school swimming for the newspaper, and Cyndi, the principal at James Monroe Elementary School in Edison, to pay forward the kindness of others.
“We all need to be reminded how lucky we are and if we can try to help out the cause to help other people it’s the right thing to do,” Thomas said. “The teams think it’s a pretty cool cause, helping children in our county.”
This year’s “Practice for a Purpose” will run from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. Professional photographer Ed Pagliarini and videographer Joe DaRold will document the event for The Marisa Tufaro Foundation.
GMC Executive Director Frank Noppenberger, who serves on The Marisa Tufaro Foundation’s board of trustees, said he continues to be impressed with the swimmers and coaches who remain committed to the cause.
“What’s most impressive to me is all the kids and coaches who come out to pay it forward,” Noppenberger said. “The kids understand (“Practice for a Purpose”) is for a good cause. Along with that, you see teams bonding in a non-competitive atmosphere, which I think is the first step in developing great sportsmanship.”
Noppenberger, who has attended previous “Practice for a Purpose” events and has been involved with scholastic sports as a coach or athletics administrator for more than four decades, said the event is among the most impressive he has ever attended.
“The organization rivaled that of any type of high-profile tournament in that the teams were well arranged and there was a lot of spirit,” Noppenberger said after attending the initial event.
Cathcart said he first broached the idea of conducting a fundraiser for The Marisa Tufaro Foundation during the conference’s year-end meeting at the conclusion of the 2017-18 season.
“Their faces lit up,” Cathcart said of the coaches in attendance at the meeting. “I thought the swim group would want to get involved.”
State Senator Patrick Diegnan, who is also a member of The Marisa Tufaro Foundation’s board of trustees, said, “by its nature, sports are competitive, and this event proves that young people in particular will always join together for a common cause and do what is right.
“We should celebrate their participation in this outstanding event.”