Johnston Urbandale Soccer Club Fundrasier Set For Monday, Honors Karen Coaldrake Fund

Karen Coaldrake had a passion for soccer and a belief that every child should have the opportunity to play.

The Johnston Urbandale Soccer Club honored Coaldrake, a Johnston school board member who died in 2008, when it established the Karen Coaldrake Financial Assistance Fund.

The fund provides families in the communities support and assistance to play soccer.

On Monday, the JUSC and Johnston and Urbandale soccer clubs will host the JUSC-Okoboji Grill FUNdraiser to benefit the Coaldrake fund.

The event includes quizzes, prizes and the opportunity to be with family, friends and teammates.

JUSC formed a fundraising committee some time ago to help offer more resources for kids, said Ozzie White, JUSC operations manager.

"As a not for profit, all we earn goes back to reinvestment for the program," White said.

The club, which has more than 2,500 players, aimed to find ways to raise money that didn't include effforts such as selling cookie dough.

"With that in mind we sat down and brainstormed," White said. "One idea was to go to local restaurants and see if we could get some kind of participation."

In the past the JUSC held meetings at , so it seemed like the best place to start.

"We went back to see how we could resurrect a formal partnership," White said. "They'll allow us to host certain events here a few times a year and allow us to use the back room for other events and meetings."

For Monday's fundraiser, Okoboji will donate 10 percent of all proceeds from 6 p.m to 9 p.m. The money raised will go to the Karen Coaldrake fund.

"The fund was set up to honor Karen, who essentially spent many years and hours of her life finding a way for children to be part of local activities," White said.

"She put a lot of her goodwill into enabling kids to play soccer."

The Coaldrake Fund description develed into Coaldrake's passion for children and how she came to love the sport.

"Karen also developed a passion for soccer through watching her boys play. This passion extended not only to her own children, but to the children of friends, and her son’s friends and teammates. She volunteered countless hours to soccer in the community, challenged thoughts and comments, and ultimately became a board member of the Johnston Soccer Club. Karen was typically one of the first to arrive at a soccer game or tournament simply because she loved being there and enjoyed watching and supporting the kids."

The JUSC website features a scholarship page, in which families can confidentially apply for assistance for the club.

"The people can apply for full or half or partial scholarships based on where they are financially," White said.

The program is about more than just soccer, White said.

"We talk about making good decisions, we want to produce good soccer players but more importantly we want to produce good people," he said.