DECA ‘playing for possibility’ at Oct. 12 Powderpuff game

Tickets are on sale now for a Powderpuff game being hosted for charity by Eden Prairie High School’s (EPHS) DECA club.

EPHS senior Celia Skubic, the club’s president, hopes the entire community will attend the annual girls’ flag football charity event to raise money for the nonprofit College Possible Minnesota. The organization aids economically disadvantaged students in their transition to college.

“It’s going to be a really fun time for a really good cause,” Skubic said.

Admission tickets and raffle tickets are $5 each and can be purchased in person at the game.

The event will occur Saturday, Oct. 12, at EPHS’s Aerie Stadium, with gates opening at 3 p.m. for a raffle and silent auction. Players, parents, and attendees are welcome to tailgate before and during the event. Concessions will also be sold at the venue.

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The first game will begin at 4 p.m., and the second game will begin at 6 p.m. In between the two games, guests can enjoy music, bid on a wide range of silent auction items, and enter a raffle. At halftime of the second game (6:25 p.m.), club leaders will announce raffle winners, and the Senior Shuffle (formerly the Dudes Dance Team) will perform.

Raffle prizes and items for bid include restaurant gift cards and baskets, tickets to sports and cultural events, ski and golf tickets, fun activities, and more.

“Our biggest thing for the silent auction is two trips,” Skubic said. “We have a trip to the Amalfi Coast for two, and a trip to Cortona for four, which is really exciting.”

There is also a GoFundMe for anyone who would like to contribute to the DECA scholarship for College Possible.

Growing leaders, entrepreneurs, and philanthropists

DECA is a global organization whose stated mission is to prepare emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality and management in high schools and colleges.

The Eden Prairie chapter focuses on leadership, entrepreneurship and philanthropy, Skubic said. Activities include running a cookie store at the high school, doing community service and competing in business competitions in various fields, including marketing and finance.

Led by teachers Margot Cowing and Scott Sayles, the club has been successful in state and national competitions. Most recently, it took its largest-ever delegation and won the highest number of honors it has ever received at DECA’s International Career Development Conference in California last May.

DECA also offers the chance to learn key life skills. “It’s for so much more than business,” Skubic said. “You learn so many important personal skills that you have for the rest of your life, like learning how to have good posture, how to rehearse, how to be professional, and how to wear a suit.”

To learn more about the EPHS DECA chapter, visit the club’s Instagram page. Students can join by Sept. 29, and the official DECA year begins Oct. 2.