By Don Ketchum

Athletes, coaches and students at Lake Havasu High School are awash in patriotism and community pride.

They have participated in and will participate in projects that reflect those sentiments.

The first was Patriot Days, from Sept. 15-26. Part of the celebration involved the visit of the traveling replica of the wall dedicated to men and women who gave their lives for their country in the Vietnam War.

That spawned an idea of One Team USA, dedicated to the support of American troops both past and present. Athletes from Lake Havasu’s teams and those opposing schools had “team photos’’ taken together, including a volleyball match from Yuma Gila Ridge and a cross-country meet that featured several schools.

The biggest accomplishment was getting the football teams from Lake Havasu and Bullhead City Mohave to pose together when they played on Sept. 24. Their annual battle for the Golden Shovel, the symbol for both schools breaking ground in the late 1960s, is akin to a playoff game, whether the teams are good or less than that.

Throughout the game, alummi from both schools were recognized and had their names read over the public-address system.

There were two moments of silence in memory of an graduate of each school who lost their lives in military operations over the last few years.

Mohave graduate and Navy Corpsman Dustin Burnett was killed in action on June 20, 2008 in Afghanistan. Lake Havasu graduate Primo Verdone, assigned to Battalion 17 Desert Warfare Division passed away on Aug. 28, 2010.

“Recognizing those servicemen and all the stories that were read was all quite moving,’’ said Lake Havasu athletic director Roger Burger.

“Team captains also signed the game balls and we had our picture. It was a real moving moment as the teams continued to move to the sidelines to then participate in the game.  As one of the players stated, “We know some day we could be serving our country together and this makes sense.’ ’’

Lake Havasu High also is supporting Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October.

The football team will wear pink jerseys for its home game against Yuma High on Friday night (Oct. 1). The junior varsity and freshman teams will wear the jerseys for games later in the month. The volleyball team will wear pink jerseys for a match, and the swimmers will wear pink caps donated by New Hope Hospice. The spirit lines and even Burger himself will wear pink.

Assistant football coach Kurt Hoffman got the ball rolling and funds were raised/donated to purchase the pink jerseys. Head coach Karl Thompson facilitated that part of the plan.

At the game, cancer survivors will march around the track and the crowd will salute them.

“We also want to urge people to continue to be aware of this disease, because the fight is not over,’’ Burger said.

On behalf of the school, he thanked the opposing schools for their participation and praised the people in Lake Havasu.

“I’m very inspired by the community, coaches, parents, schools and players who lead the way in supporting the values of this community,’’ Burger said.

Have a story idea for us? Please pass it along to Don Ketchum at dketchum@aia365.com (metro Phoenix, northern and northeastern Arizona) or Les Willsey at lwillsey@aia365.com (Scottsdale, Mesa, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert, Ahwatukee, Tucson and southern Arizona). Please include contact information such as phone number and/or e-mail address.