Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05
February 7, 2008 issue
Soccer Star Figueroa To Highlight WHS Playmakers Benefit February 16
Celebrity Athlete Establishing United Nations Initiative in Boone
Story by Anna Oakes
The town of Boone is soon to become a linchpin in a United Nations initiative to use sports to promote education, health, development and peace.
The Gol Iluminado Foundation, headed by soccer great Don Elias Figueroa, will establish a Peace House on King Street, across from the Turchin Center, to serve as its global headquarters and to develop a sports program for underprivileged and at-risk youth.
On Saturday, February 16, the organization will hold a raffle and fundraising event benefiting the Watauga High School Playmakers, a group of advanced theatre students who are competing for a Southeastern Theatre Conference Championship in Chattanooga, Tenn. in March. The benefit takes place at 7:00 p.m. in Farthing Auditorium.
The Playmakers won the award for Distinguished Play at the North Carolina Theatre Conference in the fall, earning a chance to compete at the regional level.
At the benefit, the Playmakers will perform their winning play, John Lennon & Me, as preparation for the competition and to support Gol Iluminado’s efforts.
Figueroa, a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador, will be present at the event. Named by FIFA (the world governing body of soccer) as one of the best six players of the 20th century, he is the only three-time South American Player of The Year. He was named the FIFA World Player of The Year in 1976 and represented his country, Chile, as captain in four World Cup championships.
“I’m really looking forward to my visit to Boone, getting to know the area and the people and embarking on this wonderful endeavor in such a beautiful and dynamic community,” Figueroa said.
Raffle tickets are on sale now for a chance to win a seven-day Caribbean cruise for two, sports memorabilia and other gifts. The drawing will take place at the event. Tickets are available at Boone Bagelry for a $20 tax-deductible donation. Only 1,000 tickets will be sold.
Others appearing at the event include ASU football quarterback Armanti Edwards, ASU women’s basketball player Whitney Tossie and ASU volleyball player Dianna Thomas. Jay Brown will perform original music and John Lennon tunes.
In 2003, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution establishing the United Nations Sport for Development and Peace program.
“I think sports are extremely important for personal development and growth,” said former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. “There’s an old saying: ‘The community that plays together, stays together.’”
The Gol Iluminado Foundation is a nonprofit corporation that involves celebrity athletes and musicians and creates events and activities to generate awareness and support of educational sports programs. In addition to Boone, the foundation has established programs in Delray Beach, Fla., Sauipe Village in Bahia, Brazil, and Villa Alemana, Chile.
To honor World Peace Day on September 21, the foundation will hold the inaugural Peace 0921 Festival in Boone on the weekend of September 20 and 21.
Individuals also have the opportunity to become a founding member of the Peace House Society to help build the Peace House in Boone. Among several benefits, founding members will receive a personalized brick on the Founders Wall of the Peace House. Annual dues are $480.
Donna Nicastro, a Gol Iluminado Foundation director and resident of Boone, said the Peace House will be a new, three-story center focusing not only on sport but also on music, art and theatre. She said the Playmakers are examples of role models who could mentor at the center in the future.
Tickets to the February 16 fundraiser at Farthing are $10 for adults and $5 for students. Raffle tickets are available at Boone Bagelry, located at 516 West King Street in Boone. For more information about the Boone Peace House project, click to www.goliluminado.org or www.peacehouseboone.org.
Want To Go?
Date: Saturday, February 16
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Farthing Auditorium
Cost: $10 adults/$5 students