S’port Up! program helps isle schools

Nineteen Big Island high schools will vie for a $50,000 share in air travel and sports equipment for student athletes during KTA Super Stores’ seventh annual S’port Up! program.

The program is a collaborative effort between KTA Super Stores, Hawaiian Airlines and Sports Line, to provide high school students with the opportunity to pursue their passion for sports. Since its inception in 2007, Big Island high school athletic departments have shared a total of $300,000.

Last year, the air travel earned through S’port Up! helped Honokaa High & Intermediate School’s boys’ soccer team defend their title as the State’s Division II champion. Athletic Director Keith Tolentino sent his 20 players to Oahu and they went on to repeat as state champions for 2012. Additionally, Tolentino purchased 30 new volleyball uniforms for both the girls’ and boys’ varsity teams.

S’port Up! is particularly helpful for smaller schools, such as Pahala’s Ka‘u High School, where more than half of all students participate in sports. The program made it a little easier for Athletic Director Kalei Namohala to buy 30 new pairs of sweat pants to match the sweat jackets she purchased the year prior for the boys’ and girls’ Cross Country teams. She also paid for round-trip airfares for seven of the 12 girls on the varsity volleyball team to travel to Oahu for the HHSAA State Girls Volleyball Championship where they took home fourth place in Division II.

From now until April 9, when KTA Super Stores’ shoppers purchase participating products, they automatically earn points for the high school of their choice. The more points a school earns the larger their share of $50,000 total for air travel and sports equipment. There are no monetary donations required from customers.

There will be more than 250 eligible products with special displays that feature the S’port Up! participating product logo.