ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The University of New Mexico volleyball program and head coach Jeff Nelson are proud to announce that Golden Equipment Company has presented a donation of $14,625 to the UNM volleyball program.
New Mexico assistant coach Pauline Manser and junior Julia Warren accepted the donation Saturday night before the men’s basketball game vs. Fresno State at WisePies Arena.
The donation, which is part of Golden’s “Colors for our Community” service program, is tabbed to help the continue the development of the Lobo volleyball program, including the beach volleyball team as it enters its second season next week.
“We are so grateful to Golden for their support of Lobo Athletics and for this amazing contribution to our volleyball programs,” Nelson said. “Because of efforts like the one Golden has made on our behalf we can do so much more for our program and student athletes. I also want to thank alum Jeanne Fairchild for her involvement in getting this program tied to Lobo Volleyball.”
Fairchild, a 2008 graduate of UNM and former Lobo volleyball player who serves as Golden’s marketing manager, echoed the sentiment.
“Golden Equipment Company is the only locally-owned heavy equipment depot left in the state of New Mexico and we felt that it was really important to tie it back to something local,” Fairchild said. “And we thought that there wouldn’t be anything better than tying it back to the University.”
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In Golden’s “Colors for our Community” program, Golden choses an organization, nonprofit or charity and decorates one of its pieces of equipment in the colors or logos or the benefiting organization. For 12 months, Golden’s rents out that equipment, with a portion of the proceeds going back to the beneficiary.
In 2015, the Lobo Club was picked for “Colors for our Community”, with all of the proceeds generated by the UNM-themed excavator going toward Lobo Volleyball.
“We have an excavator that we painted cherry red and we put the Lobo logo all over it,” Fairchild said. “We have raised almost $15,000 for this program, which is the most that we’ve ever raised as a company for this ‘Colors for our Community’ program.”
In the past, Golden has worked with Wounded Warrior Project, Habitat for Humanity, Carrie Tingley Hospital Foundation and El Ranchito de los Niños.
“Obviously, I’m still very connected to Lobo Volleyball,” Fairchild said, “and I wanted to do something that would contribute to what I was involved in and try to get the sand facility to where they want it and where they need it.”
New Mexico beach volleyball, which is playing and practicing at Lucky 66 Bowl this season, opens its 2016 campaign next week at the Sun Devil Challenge in Tempe, Ariz.