Supporting sports and scholars

Contractor Express in Oceanside is hoping to aid two Oceanside High School institutions in one fell swoop this September: raising money for the Oceanside District Scholarship Fund while increasing community support for the OHS football team.

The store will be selling T-shirts starting Sept. 1 to support the Sailors at their home game on Sept. 23. However, all of the profits from the shirt sales will go to the scholarship fund.

“It’s kind of a dual sponsorship,” said Greg Failla, vice president of Contractor Express. “Raising money for the scholarship fund and supporting the football team at the same time.”

The shirts will all have the Oceanside Sailors logo on the front and the sponsors’ logos on the back. The shirts — which are all white — are meant to be worn to the Sept. 23 game specifically. It’s a “white out” game, where Oceanside tries to get as many people wearing white (one of the team’s colors) into the stands as possible to support the Sailors.

Residents will be able to purchase the shirts at Contractor Express, located at 389 Atlantic Ave., starting Sept. 1. They will also be available at Oceanside High School starting the first week of school (classes begin on Sept. 6 after Labor Day). The shirts will also be available for purchase at Promo Wear 4u, located at 2782 Long Beach Road, which is printing the shirts.

Failla said that people who purchase the shirts at Contractor Express will receive a small, complimentary gift. He also said that if this fundraiser goes well, Contractor Express may do something similar for the basketball season later in the school year.

“We’ve been here since 1981, and the community has been coming and purchasing products from us for a long time,” Failla said. “And the owners of this store are all Oceanside High School graduates, so we just wanted to try to get a little more involved in the community and give back to the community that’s given us so much.”