Little Wolf High School weight room upgraded

By Holly Neumann

The Manawa Athletic Booster Club has donated additional equipment to the weight room at Little Wolf High School.

“This donation means an enormous amount to the students and all of the athletic programs at Little Wolf Junior/Senior High School,” Principal Dan Wolfgram said. “The equipment that was here was in desperate need of replacement.”

The equipment includes four double-sided half cages, six new bars, six three-way adjustable benches, two dip attachments and two dual landmines.

Small rural schools such as Manawa have to rely on organizations such as the Booster Club to help defray the costs of these programs because of decreased state funding, according to Wolfgram.

“Now that we have additional equipment, we have also begun a weight club here at the school,” he said. “The weight room is open during various hours and is supervised by coaches and members of the community.”

Fifty-five people took part in an annual lift-a-thon to raise funding for the project.

“This fundraiser is directly given back to the kids,” Booster Club board member Brad Johnson said. “We like these types of fundraisers because everything the kids earn is turned right around and rewarded to them. The kids can take ownership and control the outcome and this year, it really paid off.”

Students and community members will benefit from this donation, Johnson said.

“Our weight room is a different place and different atmosphere because of the donations given by the community,” he said. “The kids are motivated to lift again and are already giving input in what to purchase next. Our lifts are now fast, efficient and effective. When you combine these three things, success is almost certainly the end product.”

Wolfgram said the Manawa Athletic Booster Club is an integral part of the Manawa school community.

“This dedicated group of individuals continue to donate their time, effort and financial resources to the students of the school,” he said. “We are so very fortunate to have them in our community.”