GREENLAND (KFSM) -- High school football teams in the River Valley and Northwest Arkansas are raising money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital by scoring as many touchdowns as possible. Through the month of September, fans can pledge to donate any dollar amount to St. Jude for every touchdown.
The head coach at Greenland High school, Lee Larkan has a special reason for giving back.
"I had a good friend of mine his son died of cancer a couple years ago," he said. As head coach and husband of a breast cancer survivor, Larkan is familiar with the struggles families endure.
"It affects your family and it really changes your life and you know in some ways it might have changed my life for the better," he said.
As the Greenland Patriots take the field against the Gentry Pioneers, fans prepare to give.
"My family has been donating to St. Jude for a while and so this is great that we're starting them out early. Our son is in 7th grade and this shows him the right way to donate his time and his money," fan Stacy McDaniel said.
With two sons on the football team, mom Sherry Anderson is hoping they can bring home a win for their team and St. Jude.
"We know friends that have been affected by cancer and even here at Greenland we've had kids that have been affected and hopefully we can raise a lot of money and score a lot of touchdowns," she said.
Coach Larkan hopes that this is a tradition that will stick with the community of Greenland for years to come.