(Photo provided)

A portion of the Warsaw Community Schools’ mission statement, “… to enrich the lives of others …,” was exemplified this week at Warsaw Community High School, as Tiger Football players organized a collection for a Columbia City player that recently suffered a terrible injury and condition.

During the season-opening game between the two schools, Columbia City senior Sam Dailey was on the sideline being attended to by the trainers and he went to the ground and became unresponsive.

The crowd at the Tigers Athletic Complex held their breath as Sam was taken from the sideline on a stretcher, and soon after, was airlifted to a hospital in Fort Wayne. It was a first-hand reminder of how fragile our young student-athletes are, and how quickly secondary athletics can become.

In the days and weeks that followed, athletes and those who track area high school sports learned that Sam, an outstanding student-athlete, was now suffering from a severe condition. It was clear he was facing a challenge greater than any he had encountered on an athletic field. Warsaw senior Gabe Furnivall expressed to WCHS Athletic Director Dave Anson that he wanted to do something for Sam and his family. This lead to the Tiger secondary standout helping to organize a 2 day collection in the WCHS cafeteria.

Area business representatives from Hall & Marose Silveus Insurance learned of the efforts and the cause, and CEO Craig Snow stepped up to provide a matching donation.

The Warsaw Community High School Athletic Department thanks both Gabe Furnivall and the Tiger Football players as well as the leadership at Hall & Marose Silveus Insurance for their tremendous generosity.