Wilton Teen Raises Funds For Teammate’s Family, Wildfire Victims

WILTON, CT — A Wilton teenager has raised nearly $3,200 to support victims of the recent wildfires in Southern California after one of his high school hockey teammates lost his home in the blaze.

Indiana Grossbard, 17, a student at Avon Old Farms School and member of the varsity hockey team, helped organize a raffle fundraiser alongside teammates Cooper Snee, 18, of Franklin Lakes, N.J., and Josh Travaglino, 18, of Scarsdale, N.Y., after learning that their teammate, Sam Houston, lost his family home in Pacific Palisades, CA.

Houston, 18, said he and his family were not home when the fire destroyed their neighborhood in January, but they received real-time updates from neighbors, according to a news release from Avon Old Farms.

“There was such a lack of certitude,” Houston said. “We were hoping our home and our town would be alright, but our neighbors were sending videos of the fires getting closer. Then it hit our neighborhood, and we just had no idea what to do.”

Beyond his own home, Houston said the fire devastated his small town, destroying schools and churches.

“We’re going to try to rebuild because we don’t want to leave that place, but it’s going to take a long time,” he said.

Wanting to help, Grossbard and his teammates proposed a raffle fundraiser to school administrators, including Head of School Jim Detora and Director of Athletics Geoff Barlow. They quickly received approval and began soliciting raffle prizes, which included signed memorabilia from sports figures such as Shaquille O’Neal and 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey captain Mike Eruzione.

“You don’t wish that on anyone,” Grossbard said. “He’s a great kid, a great teammate, so we wanted to do something nice for him and his family.”

Tickets were sold for $5 each, raising a total of $3,190. Proceeds will go directly to families affected by the fires, with Houston’s community maintaining a spreadsheet to allocate funds to those in need.

“It’s not getting thrown into some general fund,” Grossbard said. “We are doing it for specific families. I think that’s important.”