Colby Men's Lacrosse Raises $22,000 for Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation

Courtesy Colby Sports Information

WATERVILLE, Maine – The Colby College men's lacrosse team continues to raise more money every year for The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation after raising more than $22,000 this year with their “Bench Press for Pulmonary Fibrosis” event at Pulver Pavilion.

The Mules raised $10,000 in the first year of the annual event in 2009, totaled $14,000 a year ago, and now break the $20,000 mark. The Colby men's lacrosse team has raised nearly $50,000 over the past three years.

"I could not be more proud of the way our team took on the challenge," said Colby head men's lacrosse coach Justin Domingos. "When I presented them with the increased fund-raising goal, no one even blinked. They truly came together as a team, getting right to work, and up until the last hours of the event they were reaching out and making phone calls to raise more money and encouraging the Colby College community to 'Bench Press for Pulmonary Fibrosis.'''

Lacrosse players collected a minimum for 10 donations and then raised money by every repetition of 135 pounds that the team member completed. All proceeds benefit The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation.

"Our guys take this event personally, as two members of the Colby lacrosse family have lost their father to Pulmonary Fibrosis, and we were happy to continue to honor their family through this annual event," Domingos said. "We were able to surpass our goal and are proud to have raised over $22,000. A big thank-you to everyone who donated to this worthy cause, as well as the Colby community for all the support we received in making this year's event a huge success."

Pulmonary Fibrosis is a devastating disease that involves scarring of the lung tissue. Often misdiagnosed, people with Pulmonary Fibrosis experience extreme discomfort as the air sacs of the lungs gradually become replaced by fibrotic tissue. When the scar forms, the tissue becomes thicker causing an irreversible loss of the tissue's ability to transfer oxygen into the bloodstream.