On Wednesday, October 12th, 2022 the Milan High School Varsity Volleyball team dedicated their game to Paul Gregorio.
Paul Gregorio, the father of senior captain Amanda Gregorio, passed away over the summer after a long battle with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The volleyball team wanted to do something special to honor Paul and his family since Amanda is a player on the varsity team.
“I was very surprised,” said Amanda when asked about her reaction to the event. “I started crying and was really emotional because I didn’t expect anyone to care that much to do something like that for my dad.”
Amanda’s assistant coach, Mackenna, and the Milan Junior Varsity Volleyball coach, LouLou, were the key planners behind this dedication. Amanda’s coach, Kathy Bradshaw, and the rest of her volleyball team helped with the planning as well. They worked together to keep the secret from the Gregorio family until the game on Wednesday night.
“During practice on Tuesday, they told us that we were going to have a red-out theme for the game and I thought that it was for Homecoming week, but then I found out that it was dedicated to my dad and that the red-out was because his favorite color was red,” said Amanda.
Donations were also raised at the game in honor of Paul and were donated to UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing), which is a transplant and organ donation program. Many people donated money to UNOS, participated in the red-out theme, and paid their respects to the Gregorio family during the game.
“It made me feel very thankful and appreciative that I had people in my life who would plan something like this in honor of my dad and to make my family and me feel so special.”
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