LLCEO Brains and Brawns breaks winter doldrums raises funds

[February 05, 2018] 

LINCOLN

On Saturday, February 3, the Land of Lincoln Creating Entrepreneurial Opportunities program held Dodgeball and Basketball tournaments at Lincoln Community High School. The tournaments were part of the “Brains and Brawns” weekend set up by students in the program.

In the basketball tournament, seven separate teams played three-on-three in half-court games lasting ten minutes with the winners advancing until they got down to two teams.

In the dodgeball tournament, five teams of four people vied for the top spot.

Winners of the tournaments received medals, t-shirts, and $150 to split between team members.

Hayley Matson, CEO of the event said the tournament was the brawn portion of the “Brains and Brawns” weekend. The brains portion was a trivia night held Friday evening at the Elks that was catered by Lincoln College and had a DJ. Matson said the turnout for trivia was great.

Matson said they planned the basketball and dodgeball tournament because it was something “fresh and new” and a change from the 5K events the last two LLCEO groups had done. Students spent a lot of time planning the event and helping put the teams together. They also had to raise funds and find sponsors for the event.

Concessions and 50/50 raffle tickets were also available during the tournament. LLCEO student Emma Cooper said members of the National Honor Society helped out with the concessions.

LLCEO Program Facilitator Jason Mauhar said the students spent months planning the event and it took a lot of time, effort, and learning. Mauhar said there is a learning curve as students have to do things they have not done before. He was proud of their hard work.

The LLCEO program teaches students to be “entrepreneurs or entrepreneurial thinkers and contribute to economic development and sustainable communities” as they learn how to form and maintain a business. Students in the program start their own businesses and learn from the outcomes. All the participants are upper classmen high school students, either juniors or seniors.

This year’s students are from Lincoln, Hartem, and Mt. Pulaski schools and include Felipe Buenrostro, Talia Andrade, Emma Cooper, Mya Roberts, Hayley Matson, Dustyn Gaston, Austin Hayes, Lyndsay Long, Zak Luken, and Emma Schoth.

Money raised from the event will be used as seed money for their individual businesses. The businesses will be introduced at the LLCEO Trade Show in April.

[Angela Reiners]