The Greater Middlesex Conference swimming community once again pooled its resources to make a splash for The Marisa Tufaro Foundation.
Hundreds of student-athletes from the league’s high school teams became “Marisa’s Minnows,” participating for the third time over the past four years in a conference-wide fundraiser with all proceeds benefiting the nonprofit.
The event, dubbed “Practice for a Purpose,” was held Dec. 11 at the Raritan Bay Area YMCA of Perth Amboy, which once again provided for participants its state-of-the art facility, including a 10-lane competition pool.
The GMC swimming community’s first two fundraisers for The Marisa Tufaro Foundation generated nearly $20,000 (the coronavirus pandemic cancelled last year’s event).
“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,” Metuchen High School Athletics Director John Cathcart said of this year’s participants.
“Those kids will do almost anything for anybody. They are that dedicated. I know how giving and caring our kids are, and I’m sure every one of those kids on the other 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.”
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 were thoroughly behind it,” Cathcart said. “They felt excited about it. It comes down to the participation and commitment of all the coaches.”
Established just over four years ago, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has already made a profound impact, donating more than $225,000 and spearheading multiple community initiatives to fulfill its mission of helping pediatric patients and other children in need 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 awards college scholarships to exceptional high school students who advance the nonprofit’s mission.
Former conference 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.
Marisa Tufaro, who would have graduated earlier this 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 blood cancer to which Marisa succumbed in 2017 at the age of 13. Despite being hospitalized for more than two years and maintaining hundreds of doctor’s appointments, Marisa, who was an honor roll student in elementary and middle school, lived a vibrant life that inspired.
This year’s GMC swimming fundraiser for The Marisa Tufaro Foundation lasted more than five hours.
Teams were 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. All the participants collectively swam inordinate miles of laps.
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 event.
“What is most impressive to me is all the kids and coaches who come out to pay it forward,” Noppenberger said. “The kids understood that (Practice for a Purpose) is for a good cause. Along with that, you saw teams bonding in a non-competitive atmosphere, which I think is the first step in developing great sportsmanship.”
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.”
Cathcart said the event could never have come to fruition without the leadership and expertise of Kate Dauphinee, who has conducted similar fundraisers for Autism New Jersey through her role as site director for the Educational Services Commission of New Jersey’s Aquatics and Fitness Center, and without the Raritan Bay Area YMCA’s staff and facility.
“As much as we are trying to create awareness and raise money for the foundation, it (was) also a way to bring all the teams and all the swimmers and all the coaches together for a fun purpose,” Dauphinee previously stated.
Dauphinee worked with Cathcart and Raritan Bay Area YMCA President and CEO Steve Jobin to organize the annual event.
“The Y is about teaching kids how to care for their neighbors and how to really learn from that,” Jobin previously stated. “We want kids to understand there is a greater purpose and why we should care about others. That’s why we wanted to do a (fundraiser) and invite all the teams from the county. That’s all part of it.”
New Jersey State Senator Patrick J. Diegnan Jr., who is 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.”