The Spanos family and the San Diego Chargers continued their tradition of support for youth health and fitness by awarding $250,000 in Chargers Champions grants to San Diego County schools.
“Schools throughout California need our support,” said President – Business Operations A.G. Spanos. “The main goal of our program is to provide students with the necessary means to live a healthy lifestyle through physical fitness.”
Chargers Champions provides grants for new facilities and equipment to improve physical fitness of students in San Diego County schools.
This year’s Chargers Champions recipients will be honored on the field during Sunday’s game between the Chargers and Detroit Lions on Sunday, Sept. 13 at Qualcomm Stadium. The following seven schools received grants to improve physical fitness, athletic or nutrition programs on school campuses.
| Granite Hills High School, El Cajon | $65,000 | New weight room |
| Sweetwater High School, National City | $63,000 | New weight room; football equipment |
| De Portola Middle School, San Diego | $40,000 | Rock Wall and aerobic equipment |
| Laurel Elementary School, Oceanside | $30,000 | Running track and outdoor obstacle course |
| Gage Elementary School, San Diego | $26,000 | Neuronasium fitness equipment |
| San Elijo Middle School, San Marcos | $16,000 | Patch course |
| Porter Elementary School, San Diego | $10,000 | Sports & fitness equipment |
Since the program’s inception in 2000, the Spanos family has donated more than $5 million to San Diego’s schools and students throughChargers Champions. The program consistently provides more support for San Diego-area schools than any other individual or private company in San Diego County.
“We are incredibly fortunate to have organizations like the San Diego Chargers step up to support education,” Dr. Randolph Ward said, theSuperintendent for San Diego County Schools. “By providing these resources, the Chargers are making a real difference in the lives of local children, not only today but in the future.”
The educational grants ranged in amounts from $65,000 to Granite Hills High school to a $10,000 grant given to Porter Elementary School.
“Thanks to the generous support of the Spanos family and the San Diego Chargers, Granite Hills’ students will now have increased access to fitness equipment in P.E. and athletics, making our entire school community healthier,” said Mike Fowler, Principal of Granite Hills High School.
Funds allocated to Chargers Champions are administered through the Chargers Community Foundation, the team’s charitable foundation. The Foundation was established in 1995 by Dean and Alex Spanos to “help San Diego build on its strengths by supporting individuals, activities and organizations that work to make the city a better place to live.”
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