Card Gives Seniors Free Admission to Lakes, Clover Park Events

It’s a way to make community connections – and a way for the community’s senior citizens to relive their high-school days.

The Clover Park School District’s Golden Clover Card offers adults aged 65 and up free admission to sporting events and other school activities such as plays and concerts where admission is otherwise charged.

“It is a partnership opportunity to get Lakewood’s senior citizens involved in our schools,” said Jayme Taylor, communications manager for CPSD. “Many of them attend our athletic and school events, anyway, so this is a great way to partner with them to give them the benefit at no extra cost.”

Applicants for the Golden Clover Card should qualify for the senior citizen and disabled person property tax exemption program. The Associated Student Bodies of Clover Park and Lakes High Schools must approve the program every year, since it is essentially a gift to applicants. In doing so, they are consenting to not taking in funds from admitting those individuals.

Taylor said that the Ancient Warrior group, a collection of Clover Park High School graduates from the 1940s and ‘50s, is a major benefactor of the program.  The group attends sporting events together – sitting in the same section, of course – and is honored at a football game every season. This year, it will be at the Sept. 23 game against Fife.  

“It’s a great way to get seniors into our schools,” Taylor said. “They have been out of high school for a long time, so unless they have grandkids, why would they go back – other than wanting to be involved in the community.

“It’s making that connection between our younger and older generations.”

Taylor said that they have received at least 40 applications so far this school year – and school only started on Wednesday. Football season kicked off last Friday, though, with an intercity meeting between Lakes and Clover Park at Harry Lang Stadium. The Lancers won 63-8.

“Usually the start of football season is what prompts people,” she said, “but it’s good all year for all athletic events.”

The card works at away games within the league – Class 2A South Puget Sound League for Clover Park and Class 3A SPSL for Lakes – but not nonleague or playoff games. The card is honored by other league schools as a courtesy, and CPSD schools do the same for their cards.

The card has been around since 2002, but the district has been more active in promoting it the last few years. In addition to being online, applications are available at all CPSD schools, as well as at the district office. Applicants can pick up their cards there, or have them mailed.

“It’s one of those things where if you knew about it, it was a great tool,” Taylor said. “But we are really trying to expand the program.”