The news site of St. Francis High School

The SFHS Crier

The news site of St. Francis High School

The SFHS Crier

The news site of St. Francis High School

The SFHS Crier

Pep bus helps support team

The halls of the school were buzzing with news there was going to be a possible pep-fan bus up to see the Saints Boys of Fall take on the Duluth East Greyhounds for their first playoff game. Students rushed to Jeff Fink’s office during lunch to solidify the plans.

As if the football gods were smiling on the little Athletic office, Fink started to put in phone calls to the bus garage about available busses for the game.

There was an available bus, and by the end of lunch Fink had produced a stack of bright blue permission slips for students who wanted to ride the pep-fan bus. With this minor stipulation: 45 students minimum must turn in their slips with the $10 fee by eight A.M Tuesday morning for the bus to be on its way up north. However, come 8 AM only 41 super fans had turned in their slips. In the end, Fink decided that so many students wanted this trip so bad; he would just take the bus anyway.

“There were nine seats left on the bus,” said secretary Heidi Antinozzi, “Well, eight because Fink wanted his own seat.”

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Fink and Andrew Forbort chaperoned the event. The news that the pep-bus was going to actually work spread through the school like wildfire thanks to many students who tweeted about getting a permission slip from the athletic office during their fifth hours, news spread rapidly and soon the door to the office was flooded with hopeful students. Fink also gave an announcement at the end of fifth hour about the slips, which helped students who either didn’t see the tweets or hear of it otherwise.

Some kids didn’t like the idea of being smashed into a bus for two and a half hours, so they decided to drive.
One student said she’d rather drive her truck with people and each person pay her a little bit for gas money than ride the bus. others said that they hate the bus, and would not want to be on the bus with that many people for that long of a time.

Some students agreed with this, but others agreed they would rather pack into a bus and pay $10 than waste the gas money driving up there.

The fee was determined after crunching some numbers. According to Antinozzi and the bussing company it cost $1.60 per mile and $15 an hour for as long as it takes. A rough estimate of people going on the bus would be around 50 people, that multiplied by the $10 fee to ride would equal around $500. Antinozzi also said any extra money that isn’t used to cover the bus company costs will go to the Athletic office, and will help pay for costs such as groundskeeper payment and porta potty cleanings.

Fink, Antinozzi, and the students had an idea and put it into action for the bus that brought the Fighting Saints super fans up to Duluth to cheer on the team.

Even parents were thankful for the opportunity the bus allowed.

“I would rather have my child in a bus riding up there[to Duluth],” said one parent, “rather than crammed in a car with an unfamiliar driver traveling two and a half hours up north, with deer and other hazards on the road.”

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