Two local construction companies, Tamarack Homes and Taggart Parkes Foundation, donated $500,000 to the Carleton Ravens football team just before the Panda Game last week.
Approximately half of the donation will be put towards student scholarships. The rest will be put into a trust used to operate the team, according to Carleton athletic director Jennifer Brenning.
The family-owned company has no direct ties to the Ravens football team, but three of the shareholder managers, brothers Jim, Ian, and Chris Taggart, all graduated from Carleton.
Jim Taggart attended the Panda Game against the University of Ottawa at TD Place Sept. 20 where the donation was announced.
“I made the terrible mistake of leaving with a minute and a half to go,” Taggart said, at the time unaware the game would be taken back for Carleton with a last second Hail Mary, caught by Ravens receiver Nate Behar.
Brenning said she was excited to see how Ravens football can engage the community, referring both to the Panda Game and the donation.
Taggart Parkes Foundation and Tamarack Homes met with Ottawa entrepreneur and Carleton alumni John Ruddy and Carleton University president Roseann O’Reilly Runte several months ago, when Carleton representatives asked if the organization would make a contribution to the team.
“We hadn’t done anything for Carleton in a while,” Taggart explained.
The Taggart brothers later brought the proposition to their management meeting to get the donation approved.
Edwards added he hopes there will be a direct correlation between the team’s success and the size and frequency of donations from the community.
“We hope that continued success on the field will bring more students to the game, prompt more alumni to come back and more alumni to support [Ravens football],” he said. “Clearly, winning programs seem to get a stronger cultural support from the school.”
In addition to the donation from Taggart and Tamarack, a $5,000 donation from NFL Canada was made at halftime during the game.
Since the Ravens ended their season last year with no wins, the program has received over $1 million in donations.
Four out of five of the Ravens’ top donors had no affiliation with Ravens football in the past, according to Edwards.
“A lot of the time we’re only able to actively pursue individuals who already played or coached with Ravens football,” he said. “But this shows that were going to be able to continue to build.”
Brenning said these recent donations were evidence of the team building momentum.
“We want this program to be a national contender,” she said.
The Carleton Ravens football team has operated entirely on corporate sponsorship and gifts since the program’s revival last year, according to Brenning.
