The Galion Alumni Association will be celebrating the 45th anniversary of the 300 Club Drawing during the Galion High School varsity football home opener on Aug. 25 against the Carey Blue Devils at Unkrich Stadium in Heise Park.

The history of the 300 Club goes back to the spring of 1978 where it originated with the Galion Boosters Club. According to current Alumni Association Vice President Joe Kleinknecht, the Boosters Club held a meeting to discuss a variety of fundraising ideas.

“From that meeting, the 300 Club came to be,” said Kleinknecht. “If I remember correctly, some of the members of the board of directors at that time were C.O. Evans, David Boyd, Dr. T.K. Huggins, Buck Monnett, Harold Beach, Jim Cass, and Ferd Unkrich, as well as myself. I’m sure there are others that I fail to recall.”

The idea presented at that meeting was to sell 300 tickets at a cost of $20 each. From there, a total of 30 drawings would be held between all of the home football and basketball games and two winners were awarded $100 each. After each drawing, the winning tickets are put back into the “hopper” and are permitted to be drawn again, allowing ticket holders to win multiple times throughout the school sports season if they are lucky enough.

Forty five years later, the only change made to the 300 Club Drawing has been in the organization who has handled it in recent years. In 2014, the Galion Boosters Club asked the Galion Alumni Association if they would keep the drawing going. Aside from that, ticket prices and the winner payout remains the same to this day.

The 300 Club Drawing is just a small part of what the Galion Alumni Association is doing for Galion City Schools.

For those who may not be aware, the Galion Alumni Association is responsible for the stone entryway that greets visitors upon arrival to the Portland Way North main entrance of the Galion City Schools campus. The Alumni Association sought donors and raised the funds for the project entirely. They met with contractors, worked up the design, and saw the project through to its completion.

Future fundraising goals for the group are aimed at providing monies for a Performing Arts Center for the schools.

The Alumni Association is also the largest contributor to Galion’s Connections Weekend held each year during Homecoming festivities, and it plays a large role in the Hall of Fame event which held annually during that weekend as well.

Tickets for the 300 Club Drawing can be purchased during the first two home football games of the season by visiting the Alumni Association tent set up in the south end zone of Unkrich Stadium. Tickets are also available by contacting Alumni Association members Joe Kleinknecht, Brian Treisch, Steve Melchoir, Bill Durtschi, Karen Flowers, Sarah Wegesin, Meghan Tyrrell and Kelly Phelps.

The Alumni Association is always looking for new members and those who would be interested in leadership roles within the organization. Any Galion alumni looking for more information can visit the Galion Alumni Association Facebook page or the Galion Alumni Association website www.galionalumni.com.

Erin Miller can be reached at 419-512-2662.