OMAHA – At a time when most volleyball players are preparing for the start of another school year and the season that comes with it, Sydney Slie is preparing for a different journey as her senior year begins.
Earlier this week Slie, who will be a senior at Bellevue East High School, was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Slie also has played the last several years for Performance Volleyball Club (formerly Nebraska Impact). Her father, James, has been involved in coaching volleyball both at Nebraska Impact and at Fort Calhoun High School and her mother, Britt, also coaches at Performance VBC.
Slie is an outstanding player and multi-dimensional player for the Chieftains and served as a team captain last year as a junior. During that junior season, she was third on the team in kills with 103, first in ace serves with 31, third in digs with 219 and led the team with 357 assists.
There are several different ways to help support Slie and her family. Below is a list of options and we will continue to update you with more information on additional fundraisers and information as time goes along. We also will tweet out updates via Twitter at @NebHSvolleyball.
A Facebook page has been established and already has nearly 400 likes. The page is loaded with information. Here is a link to the page:
A GoFundMe page has been established to help the family offset medical expenses and has already risen $1,600 in two days. While the site’s goal is $1,500, obviously medical expenses will far exceed that goal, so more donations are welcomed and encouraged. Here is a link to that page:
A social media hash tag of #StandWithSyd has been coined as the official slogan for the Slie support system.
There will be a sweet corn stand that will donate all its sales to the Slie family. The stand will open at 8 a.m. tomorrow (Saturday, Aug. 1) and stay open until the corn is gone. The stand will be located at Tuffy’s Parking Lot at 2204 Pratt Ave – Cornhusker Road – in Bellevue.
Also, there will be a 4-on-4-volleyball tournament at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 20, at The Factory (formerly The Oasis). There will be two divisions – High School and Adult as well as Junior High and younger. Cost is $40 per team and all proceeds will be given to the Slie family. For more information about the tournament, you can send an email to 4v4teams@gmail.com