Hauppauge Kicks For Cancer Event Raises $36K

HAUPPAUGE, NY — The stands of Hauppauge High School were a sea of pink on Oct. 3 as the entire school community came out in support of the 16th annual Kicks for Cancer event.

Roughly $36,000 was raised and split among several cancer-fighting organizations, the school district announced.

Kicks for Cancer began as a way to honor and support a Hauppauge High School student, Courtney Tomkin, who was diagnosed with brain cancer at age 17. The summer after Courtney was diagnosed, Hauppauge High School’s girls varsity soccer goalkeeper, Alexis Gonzalez, went to her coach, Jesseca Kulesa, asking how the team could put something together to help Courtney and her family. From that conversation, Kicks for Cancer was born.

The Hauppauge High School turf field roared with thunderous applause as the girls and boys varsity soccer teams took to the field wearing special pink uniforms. The boys team played Westhampton Beach High School in the first game of the evening, followed by the girls game against Eastport-South Manor Junior-Senior High School.

Both Hauppauge teams took home the win.

"Say it, fight it, cure it!" rang through the crowd as the Kicks for Cancer fight song.

Food trucks and tents filled with homemade gift items, food and Kicks for Cancer gear lined the field. Supporters were able to enjoy several activities before and during the soccer games, including face painting, bounce houses and raffle prizes. The proceeds of the event went toward research and finding a cure in Courtney’s memory.

The money raised by this year’s event was split amongst several agencies that fight cancer, including the American Cancer Society, Making Headway Foundation, the American Lung Association, Chad Tough Defeat DIPG Foundation and Make-a-Wish as well as the Courtney Tomkin Scholarship and local families in need.

"That fall, she ran out onto the field facing an uphill battle," said Courtney’s father, Daryl Tomkin. "You wouldn’t have guessed by the big smile on her face as she greeted her teammates in the middle of the field. It was the day her friends and this community stood by her side and developed Kicks for Cancer. This community was a place she loved to call her home. Kicks for Cancer meant the world to Courtney and to us, her family. We hope that Kicks for Cancer continues to grow, that the proceeds will benefit other children suffering the terrible tragedy of cancer, and that someday this charitable event will help in finding a cure."