By now you have probably seen one of these buckets at the hottest hangouts in Andover- Jake’s Market and Pizza Chef. Some have been generous to make donations and some may have looked at them and wondered what they are for. Well…..let me tell you a story.

Brandon Wood is a multi sport athlete and currently a junior at Merrimack Valley High School. He is also an AE/MS alumni class of 2013. While at AE/MS he decided to run track his 7th and 8th grade year to simply stay in shape for football. Brandon soon found out that he was pretty good at his new sport. He qualified for the state meet in every event he tried. His 8th grade year, at the last track meet of the season, he decided to try hurdles. When asked “Why?” he simply said “Why not, it’s the last meet”. He took first place in the event and qualified to run hurdles in the state meet. At the state meet he proceeded to take first place in the hurdles and set the AE/MS school record in the event, despite only being the second time he ever ran in the event.

Now in high school he continues to excel on the track. His freshman year he qualified for the Division II state meet. The results from that meet qualified him to advance to the Meet of Champions , the only freshman hurdler in the state to qualify. He earned Rookie of the Year honors for his team that year. His sophomore year he continued to excel on the track collecting medals and awards at several meets and invitationals. He qualified for the Division II state meet and then again for the Meet of Champions. His results at both of those meets earned him an invitation to the inaugural Granite State Games, where he proceeded to take the gold medal and set the records, in the 110M and the 300M hurdles and a bronze medal in the 4×100. He received the Coaches Award for his team that year. Currently in his junior year he is considered one of the top hurdlers in the state and has his sights set on breaking the state record before he graduates.

Now the reason for the collection buckets. As a result of his accomplishments, in such a short time, he has received an invitation to represent his community, his state, and the United States in the 2016 Down Under Games in Australia. He is one of only 33 Track and Field athletes, from the Eastern Conference, that received an invitation to represent the United States in these games. He is excited to have this opportunity to represent his community and is asking for some help. The trip is expensive, he needs to raise about $6,000 and the trip will not be possible without these funds. If you would like more information on his sponsorship letter, please contact Jason or Heather Wood at mvpridecoach@nullgmail.com or dekteig18@nullgmail.com. If you would like to make a direct donation please visit downundersports.com/payment?160417 . He really needs your help!