Sorgi-Led Blanket Drive Spreads Support
May 26, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The design was the same, the pattern was one they’d used, and the little girl had received her blanket right around Christmas while undergoing cancer treatments.
Nikki Sorgi has no way of knowing for sure if the blanket – described by an aunt who cares for the child during the school day – is one of more than 400 she, her older sister and Utica Ford classmates have donated to University of Michigan’s C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital over the last three years. But that doesn’t matter – the fact that a blanket, any blanket, is bringing a child comfort hits home as Sorgi considers what she’s helped to accomplish.
Sorgi is a recipient of an MHSAA/Lake Trust Credit Union “Community Service Award” for helping spearhead a campaign that stretched over the course of her high school career, with the co-leadership of her older sister Alex (a 2015 Ford graduate) and large contributions from her school’s National Honor Society chapter, student council and school store.
“It was really great to see, from the toy drive we started my freshman year, there are other kids out there who care,” Nikki Sorgi said. “A lot of people have this stereotypical view of teenagers, that they’re more concerned about themselves and what’s going on in their lives. It was cool to see other kids out there who care, who want to make a difference, even if they don’t have the ability to start their own project or event.”
Sorgi this fall will follow her sister Alex to Bowling Green State University, beginning studies toward an eventual career as a pediatrician. Providing care for children has been a major drive in her life since her freshman year, when she and Alex collected 250 toys to donate to hospitalized children.
About that time, a medical issue struck closer to home – a friend and classmate was diagnosed with cancer. Realizing that a toy drive was great for younger kids but not as much of a help for older ones, the Sorgi sisters turned their focus to creating homemade tie-knot fleece blankets that could comfort patients of all ages.
Sadly, the friend who inspired the drive, Stefan Oncia, died after his battle in December 2014. A month later, the first donation of 60 blankets went to Kids Kicking Cancer in Southfield. The following Christmas season, more than 150 blankets were donated to patients at C.S. Mott. This past Christmas, the Sorgis delivered nearly 200 more blankets.
Along the way, Ford’s NHS helped raise funds for materials, and more than 60 students helped assemble them during an after-school blanket-making party. The Bemis Junior High life skills class also has contributed blankets the last two years, and Nikki worked with her travel softball coach to make their holiday gift exchange instead a donation of blankets.
The girls’ mother Roni has had a number of big assists along the way, and that likely will continue with Nikki finishing up high school (she’ll also join her sister playing softball at BGSU). Nikki, a four-year varsity softball and basketball player, said she’s talked to her coach Matt Joseph (who coaches both teams) about ways to continue the blanket drive in the future. Her brother Joey will be a sophomore next year and is expected to pick up the cause, with the sisters returning home at Thanksgiving to help orchestrate the drive with the help of Ford sports teams or NHS if it remains involved.
Nikki will use the award as a scholarship toward paying for her education. Her desire to become a doctor started before she started playing such a large role in bringing patients comfort – but seeing how the blankets have impacted children at the hospital has swayed her toward pediatrics while also teaching her a few lessons in persistence and communication.
“It shows the blanket drive might be one small thing, but it shows how much one small thing can do for people who are sick, or struggling, whatever the case may be,” Sorgi said. “Even though it’s just a small gesture.”
The Community Service Awards are sponsored by the Michigan High School Athletic Association and Lake Trust Credit Union to recognize student-athletes' efforts to improve the lives of others in their communities. In addition to the $1,000 award, the Lake Trust Foundation is awarding an additional $500 to each honoree, to be donated to a non-profit, 501 (c)(3) organization of the awardee’s choice.
PHOTOS: (Top) Utica Ford senior Nikki Sorgi sits in front of a mountain of homemade blankets headed for C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital. (Middle) Sorgi, with older sister Alex (right) and Kevin Smith from Mott community relations, delivers the blankets to the hospital. (Photos courtesy of the Sorgi family.)
2017 Community Service Awards
Sunday: Colon "Yard Squad" - Read
Monday: Bailey Brown, Brighton - Read
Tuesday: Justice Ottinger, Newaygo - Read
Thursday: Katie Sesi, Ann Arbor Huron - Read
Week 9 Football Playoff Listing
October 22, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Here is a list of Michigan High School Athletic Association football playing schools, displaying their win-loss records and playoff averages through the eighth week of the season. Schools on this list are in enrollment order. An asterisk (*) beside a record indicates that a team has eight or fewer games scheduled. A caret (^) beside a school’s name indicates that a team is one win away from playoff qualification.
Those schools with 11-player teams with six or more wins playing nine-game schedules, or five or more wins playing eight games or fewer, will qualify for the MHSAA Football Playoffs beginning Nov. 1-2. Schools with 5-4, 4-3 or 4-4 records may qualify if the number of potential qualifiers by win total does not reach the 256 mark. Schools with six or more wins playing nine-game schedules or five or more wins playing eight games or fewer may be subtracted from the field based on playoff average if the number of potential qualifiers exceeds the 256 mark.
Once the 256 qualifying schools are determined, they will be divided by enrollment groups into eight equal divisions of 32 schools, and then drawn into regions of eight teams each and districts of four teams each.
Those schools with 8-player teams will be ranked by playoff average at season’s end, and the top 16 programs will be drawn into regions of eight teams each for the playoff in that division, which also begins Nov. 1-2.
To review a list of all football playoff schools, individual school playoff point details and to report errors, visit the Football page of the MHSAA Website.
The announcement of the qualifiers and first-round pairings for both the 11 and 8-player playoffs will take place on Oct. 27 on the Selection Sunday Show at 7 p.m. on FOX Sports Detroit. The playoff qualifiers and pairings will be posted to the MHSAA Website following the Selection Sunday Show.
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11-Player Playoff Listing
1. Sterling Heights Stevenson, 2781, 4-4, 51.500
2. Utica Eisenhower, 2772, 4-4, 53.750
3. Clarkston, 2737, 7-1, 95.500
4. Macomb Dakota, 2693, 8-0, 108.000
5. Howell ^, 2672, 5-3, 64.625
6. Grand Blanc, 2624, 6-2, 81.625
7. East Kentwood ^, 2612, 5-3, 66.750
8. Rockford, 2572, 7-1, 92.750
9. Clinton Township Chippewa Valley, 2506, 7-1, 95.875
10. Lake Orion, 2490, 6-2, 78.375
11. Dearborn Fordson ^, 2309, 5-3, 68.589
12. Holland West Ottawa ^, 2293, 5-3, 66.000
13. Northville, 2275, 7-1, 97.250
14. Detroit Cass Tech, 2262, 8-0, 107.000
15. Brighton ^, 2164, 5-3, 69.000
16. Monroe ^, 2145, 5-3, 62.500
17. Detroit Catholic Central, 2132, 7-1, 94.161
18. Plymouth ^, 2126, 5-3, 61.625
19. Canton, 2078, 7-1, 95.750
20. Novi, 1986, 4-4, 52.375
21. Livonia Stevenson, 1983, 4-4, 49.000
22. Macomb L'Anse Creuse North, 1965, 7-1, 89.500
23. West Bloomfield ^, 1941, 5-3, 63.750
24. New Baltimore Anchor Bay, 1899, 4-4, 48.875
25. Saline, 1897, 7-1, 94.275
26. Westland John Glenn ^, 1880, 5-3, 61.375
27. Holt, 1866, 4-4, 53.250
28. Warren Mott, 1796, 8-0, 99.000
29. Romeo, 1793, 4-4, 54.750
30. Oxford, 1782, 4-4, 51.625
31. Rochester Hills Stoney Creek, 1759, 6-2, 79.250
32. Hudsonville ^, 1736, 5-3, 70.875
33. Ann Arbor Skyline, 1715, 4-4, 49.250
34. Grand Ledge, 1715, 4-4, 51.250
35. Belleville ^, 1714, 5-3, 64.750
36. Davison, 1692, 4-4, 44.250
37. Walled Lake Northern, 1688, 6-2, 80.125
38. Traverse City West ^, 1653, 5-3, 66.500
39. Rochester, 1615, 4-4, 52.125
40. Waterford Kettering ^, 1604, 5-3, 66.125
41. Temperance Bedford, 1600, 8-0, 114.000
42. Grosse Pointe South ^, 1598, 5-3, 62.500
43. Rochester Adams ^, 1582, 5-3, 67.000
44. Saginaw Heritage ^, 1575, 5-3, 60.250
45. Warren DeLaSalle ^, 1564, 5-3, 74.500
46. Walled Lake Western, 1556, 8-0, 108.000
47. Flint Carman-Ainsworth, 1488, 7-1, 86.875
48. Detroit U-D Jesuit, 1476, 4-4, 55.500
49. Midland, 1462, 7-1, 90.750
50. Ypsilanti Lincoln, 1460, 7-1, 85.875
51. Pinckney ^, 1452, 5-3, 65.625
52. Traverse City Central ^, 1448, 5-3, 60.571
53. Oak Park ^, 1438, 5-3, 64.875
54. Detroit Martin Luther King *, 1432, 7-0, 103.571
55. Royal Oak, 1414, 4-4, 47.625
56. Southgate Anderson, 1409, 4-4, 48.500
57. Ypsilanti Community, 1399, 4-4, 45.000
58. Port Huron ^, 1398, 5-3, 63.107
59. Wyandotte Roosevelt, 1373, 8-0, 110.000
60. Portage Central, 1372, 8-0, 108.000
61. Lansing Everett ^, 1369, 5-3, 58.625
62. Portage Northern, 1364, 6-2, 74.625
63. Garden City, 1362, 4-4, 47.125
64. Southfield, 1356, 7-1, 95.875
65. North Farmington *, 1352, 5-3, 56.286
66. Caledonia ^, 1350, 5-3, 60.000
67. Battle Creek Lakeview, 1348, 8-0, 90.000
68. Birmingham Seaholm, 1337, 8-0, 103.000
69. Birmingham Brother Rice, 1326, 8-0, 111.200
70. Grosse Pointe North ^, 1323, 5-3, 65.375
71. Muskegon Mona Shores, 1314, 6-2, 79.500
72. Midland Dow, 1304, 7-1, 85.036
73. Farmington Hills Harrison, 1300, 7-1, 93.750
74. South Lyon, 1277, 6-2, 82.250
75. Swartz Creek, 1277, 4-4, 52.768
76. Birmingham Groves, 1274, 7-1, 85.875
77. Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills ^, 1231, 5-3, 52.500
78. Fenton, 1188, 8-0, 101.000
79. Grand Rapids Northview, 1182, 4-4, 49.750
80. Mattawan, 1176, 4-4, 45.625
81. Warren Woods Tower, 1170, 6-2, 62.750
82. Muskegon Reeths-Puffer, 1151, 7-1, 92.500
83. Lowell, 1146, 8-0, 118.000
84. Taylor Truman, 1131, 6-2, 74.500
85. East Lansing, 1124, 4-4, 52.750
86. Holly, 1124, 4-4, 49.375
87. Muskegon, 1118, 7-1, 97.875
88. Lapeer East, 1113, 4-4, 50.625
89. Marquette *, 1110, 5-2, 73.286
90. Detroit East English ^, 1109, 5-3, 59.750
91. Detroit Cody ^, 1106, 5-3, 57.250
92. Allen Park, 1103, 6-2, 76.625
93. Detroit Renaissance ^, 1097, 5-3, 53.268
94. Detroit Mumford, 1090, 6-2, 72.732
95. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern, 1079, 6-2, 71.250
96. St. Johns, 1079, 4-4, 47.625
97. Zeeland East ^, 1071, 5-3, 67.125
98. Lapeer West, 1063, 7-1, 91.375
99. Redford Thurston ^, 1063, 5-3, 65.375
100. Auburn Hills Avondale, 1055, 4-4, 42.375
101. Byron Center, 1039, 6-2, 68.750
102. Mt. Pleasant, 1033, 7-1, 92.875
103. Riverview, 993, 6-2, 66.625
104. St. Joseph, 986, 7-1, 88.875
105. Orchard Lake St. Mary's, 980, 4-4, 54.625
106. Petoskey ^, 965, 5-3, 62.000 &a