Chapin High's Garrett Huyck, left, and Lamar High's Shane Amerson help a boy shop during the Touchstone Energy Cooperatives Bowl shopping event at Target in Myrtle Beach.
Photo by Travis Bell
Two days before 88 rugged, battle-ready high school football players were scheduled to take the field at Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium for the 72nd annual North vs. South all-star game sponsored by South Carolina’s electric cooperatives, the teams took a break from football drills to practice something else – selfless acts of kindness.
At a Target store in Myrtle Beach, there were no opposing sides. No fierce game faces, just smiling players, who were teamed up with 44 delighted elementary students to help each one spend $150 on necessities first, and niceties second.
Each child was flanked by a player from the North team and another from the South team. The trios had one glorious hour to shop, so the players stood guard, ready to block offensive shoppers while their young companions scored pants, shoes, coats and even a few toys.
Half the budget was allotted to clothes, so the players also served as accountants, keeping the calculators on their cell phones busy. The children’s sizes were listed on a cheat sheet, so the goal was always in sight.
Boys and girls, some barely taller than the red Target shopping carts, were clearly in heaven. Shopping sprees with $150 to lavish on family, friends and themselves is a rare treat for most kids. Touchstone Energy Cooperatives picked up the tab while players helped the kids pick out new wardrobes and stay within their budgets. Some seemed to be having a better time than the kids.
Domarion Grant might be small for his age, but he wasn’t intimidated by the escorts helping him pick out jeans. South team defensive tackle Garrett Huyck held some large contenders up to Grant’s tiny waist. Domarion liked just about everything.
“Let’s just get them anyway. I’ll grow into them,” he directs, adding them to the bright red cart. “Let’s go try them on and then we’ll get toys.” And off they went, Domarion leading the charge.
Some of the girls were not as easily impressed with the athletes’ shopping skills. Bri’Asia Burgess-Boyle said she had to teach her escorts “a little bit” about shopping. “They’re a little clumsy,” she says of her personal running backs Hunter Helms (North) and Ramsey Lewis (South), who could not hold back laughter.
Meanwhile, several boys were buzzing the hoodie racks. “And we still need one more shirt,” says Kyle Forbes, a small blonde boy who appeared to take his mission seriously.
“Hmmm. Is this too small for his hoodie?” South team offensive lineman Tradd Castles asks innocently. His 270-pound frame dwarfed the kid-sized blue, zippered contender for Kyle he was holding up to his chest.
North team’s Markee Martin, a 6-foot-5 defensive lineman weighing in at 360 pounds wasn’t the right person to try it on either, so he checked his master sheet for answers.
Every sale rack drew a crowd as the kids buzzed around with their amused players in tow. Shopping carts filled up quickly with bright colored coats and new sneakers, lots of jeans, socks and jackets.
At least one girl shared her good fortune with family. “I’m shopping for me and my baby sister,” says Neylin Lopez. “Christmas is her birthday.”
Tasked with keeping the budget on track, North team defensive back A.J. Jefferson held up two small toys. “Keep this or put it away?” He asks, waiting for a decision from his pony-tailed shopping coach.
“Keep this one,” Rihanna Rodriquez-Bluming directs as Jefferson tosses a green ball in her shopping cart.
“It’s been a pleasure meeting Rihanna and shopping with her,” says Chandler Matthews, a 205-pound linebacker playing for the South and pushing the cart. “I’m enjoying this a lot.”
As the kids finished shopping, the checkout lines filled up fast. Autumn Meril relaxed with her feet up in an oversized shopping cart while her players scanned her bounty through the self-checkout. She seemed to like having her own personal football team.
“What Touchstone Energy is doing for these young people is great, because at Christmas time there are a lot of kids who go without,” says North team coach Victor Floyd. “It’s definitely a plus for the community and our [players] enjoy doing it.”
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Get There
When: Dec. 14. Kickoff at noon.
Where: Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium, 705 33rd Avenue North, Myrtle Beach.
Tickets: Advance-purchase tickets are available online for $15 at TouchstoneEnergyBowl.com.
Don’t miss: The 2019 Mr. Football award—the state’s highest honor for prep athletes—will be presented during halftime. Vote for your top pick at scliving.coop/football.
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Touchstone Energy Cooperatives Bowl kicks off Dec. 14—The state’s top high school football players will battle on the gridiron in the 2018 Touchstone Energy Cooperatives Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 14.