COLUMBIA, SC— The Fisher DeBerry Foundation held its Sixth Annual South Carolina Coaches for Charity event, with more than 300 guests in attendance at the Columbia Convention Center.
Hall of Fame Coach Willie Jeffries (who filled in for head coach Buddy Pough), South Carolina's Steve Spurrier and Clemson's Dabo Swinney highlighted the event along with Fisher DeBerry, South Carolina native and Hall of Fame former head football coach of the U.S. Air Force Academy.
The event was held in conjunction with the Deberry Foundation to raise funds to help send children from single-parent families to Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) summer camps.
Some of the top football coaches from around the state were in attendance, all in the name of their favorite charity. In addition to Jefferies (Pough), Spurrier and Swinney, active head coaches like Mike Ayers (Wofford), Bruce Fowler (Furman), and Citadel head coach Mike Houston, were all there for a worthy cause.
Each coach chose a charity that benefit from his participation. In the first four years of the event, over $200,000 has been raised for charitable organizations across South Carolina.
All the guests in attendance enjoyed a cocktail reception, a dinner program emceed by WIS News 10's Rick Henry and former coach Art Baker, entertainment, football highlight videos, live and silent auctions and a "Coaches Roundtable," which highlighted all of the coaches on stage together.
During the evening, each coach presented their respective "Community MVP" with The 2014 Jerry Richardson Community MVP Award. Senior defensive end Reggie Owens received the top honor this year from Pough (Jeffries). Owens was honored for his heroic actions, where he saved the lives of three children after a horrific DUI crash near Savannah in April.
Other 2015 Jerry Richardson Community MVP Award recipients are: Bobby Ivey (posthumously) chosen by Mike Ayers; Keeter Horton chosen by Bruce Fowler; Andy Clawson chosen by Mike Houston; Marcus Lattimore chosen by Steve Spurrier; Eric Mac Lain chosen by Dabo Swinney.
Pictures Courtesy of The State Newspaper
