The Hope College volleyball and women’s soccer teams will do their part to aid the fight against cancer this weekend.
The “Dig and Kick for a Cure to Help Hope Win!” is a tribute to former Hope women’s tennis coach Karen Page, who died in July after battling brain cancer for several years.
“Don’t be confused. The phrase, “HOPE WINS,” is not a boastful statement of vain conceit nor is it intended to relate the fight against cancer to a friendly game. It does not refer to a tradition of success or even talking about Hope College at all,” Hope co-athletic director Eva Dean Folkert said in a press release. “The statement is intended to connect with all survivors, victims, and their families who when confronted with the burden of battling this powerful disease held on to one thing... Hope.
“Hope for recovery... Hope for the future... Hope for a miracle... Hope that the nausea would subside... Hope that hair would return... Hope that insurance would cover their expenses... Hope that they would be able to see their children graduate, get married, become parents... Hope that the pain would numb... Hope that they would still feel and look like a woman... Hope that the scars could be covered...
“Hope for a cure.”
The program starts at 6:30 p.m. Friday when the volleyball team plays Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association rival Albion College at DeVos Fieldhouse. The women’s soccer team will face Albion at noon Saturday at Van Andel Soccer Stadium.
Players and coaches from the two teams will celebrate and remember the survivors and victims of breast cancer in Page’s memory.
Page, 60, was serving as director of the college’s DeWitt Tennis Center when she died. She coached the Hope women’s tennis team for 12 years as well as a lengthy career as a high school boys and girls tennis coach at West Ottawa.
Fans attending the contests are encouraged to wear pink, too. HOPE WINS T-shirts can be purchased for $10 as well as pink wristbands for $1 at both games.
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