Welcome to the fourth edition of El Paso Rugby’s Monthly Newsletter!
Where we keep you updated on all things El Paso Rugby. We’re excited to have you along for the journey! Check out what we got up to in April.
New Logo and Club Shirts
We launched our beautifully designed, professional logo along with pre-sales of our first club t-shirts in April! Thanks to Elliot Cohen of elliotcohendesign.com for his excellent work on the logo. We love the clean, modern lines. It features a Jackalope with the Franklin Mountains and the star of El Paso atop its antlers, with three mountain peaks as a nod to the three founders. Can you see the hidden rugby ball in the logo?
Playing with the Brujos
A couple of our players got in on their first rugby match here in the Southwest! Thanks goes out to the Brujos from Albuquerque for letting them join in on their match.
It was the rugby premier of Fotu Malaefono – and ladies and gentlepeople this man volunteered himself as prop… in his first ever rugby match. Absolute champion. He did an amazing job and was securing those rucks all over the field. His teammate, Jonathan Regan made incredible runs on the wing – in true flanker fashion he would barrel through the opposition every time he got the ball. It was great, high action rugby to watch! We were so proud to cheer them on and we can’t wait to see more rugby from these fellas.
Youth Rugby at Fort Bliss
Fort Bliss reached out and asked if we would come introduce the kids on base to rugby. Say less (as our military men would say)! Groups of Jackalopes went into school rooms, gyms, and playgrounds to tell the kiddos a little about rugby and share the rugby love. The school-age kids learned how to pass and catch while trying out their jukes on us. The middle and high schoolers got into some contact as well, learning good body positioning and getting some rucking against pads. All-in-all we had great first interactions and we plan to return to run a clinic with them over the summer. Rugby is for sharing!
7 Deadly Sins Party @ Church Bar
Our first big event fundraiser was a success! Thank you to everyone who came out in support. This was a costume party to celebrate the end of the lent and everyone was encouraged to embody one of the seven deadly sins.
This event would not have been possible without the generous donations from many local business. Shout out to our gracious co-hosts at Church Bar and all of these folks who donated prizes for our eager party-goers: Envy Aesthetic Center and Azul Medspa, Float and Calm, L&J Cafe, The Plaza Hotel, Relaxe EP, Seductions, Sun City Tattoo (Tattoo Artist Tek). Shout out to Selfie360 for coming out to capture some of the amazing costumes!
We raised more money than we initially estimated and this puts us well on our way to purchasing our first sets of jerseys. It was also a damn good time with all sorts of crazy costumes – from Lusty raining men scenes to Proud lions. We’re excited to make this an annual event and watch it grow over the years.
Back at 915 Rescue Runners
El Paso Rugby returned to volunteer with 915 Rescue Runners again in April. The pups were all tails wagging and so were the ruggers. We found a couple that would perfectly fit on a rugby pitch. Can you guess which position each of these dogs would take on the pitch?
As always, Sunday Rescue Runs are open to the public and we’d encourage any of you to sign up and give these loving puppers some good walk time. Actually, you can run with them or even adopt one if you really want to level up.
Extra! Extra! Hear all about it!
The three founders of El Paso Rugby – Arilene Hernandez, Susan Lackey, and Kerry Maguire – spoke with Adam Hughes on his podcast Late to the Breakdown. His podcast focuses on American rugby culture and we appreciate him taking the time to include El Paso Rugby in the conversation. The episode covers the proud moments of starting a new club, along with the struggles, and the new rugby family we’re forming in El Paso. Adam also interviewed our founders back in January for the book he is writing called This is Rugby. Follow along with his journey through the podcast to hear more interesting stories from clubs around the US.
Giving Fund – Giving Fee Free!
A huge Thank You to Kim Igafo! Besides being the mother of our men’s President, Fotu Maleafono, she’s also the very first donor to El Paso Rugby’s Giving Fund on PayPal. As a 501c3 we get special access to this Giving Fund where we get to keep every cent of what is donated – PayPal doesn’t take a cut. This will be a great tool when we have a donation drive to raise money before our Fall season of play. If you’re thinking about throwing us some coin in the meantime, please use our Giving Fund so we get to keep all that dough cause fees suck.
Look Ahead: Member Access Only
The Look Ahead is a special portion of the El Paso Rugby Newsletter that can only be accessed by those who are active players and social members. Become a Social Member today! We'd love to have you be a part of the club.