A friendly competition for a great cause in memory of a dear friend: Radford Media Group donates $3,000 to the Aimee Kaiser Memorial Scholarship from the Stix vs. Mix Benefit Pickleball Match.
The idea initially came from KDKD morning-show host Steve Stevens, after he saw a humorous pickleball charity event on television. He discussed it with Clay Radford, CEO of Radford Media Group and also the morning-show host for KXEA, who loved the idea and proposed they raise funds for the Aimee Kaiser Memorial Scholarship.
Radford was the sole survivor of a car accident in 2007 that took the lives of his close friends Aimee Kaiser and Mindy Ryles. Aimee’s scholarship was started with donations at the time of her death, and it continues to be made available to CHS seniors by generous donations from friends and the Clinton community. Scholarships are awarded to one male and one female student athlete each year. Recipients must demonstrate high morals and good academic achievement, supported by teacher recommendations.
The two morning-show hosts competed for donations from listeners, encouraging them to donate to their favorite host/stations: Steve Stevens with “Mornings in the Stix” on KDKD, or Clay Radford with “Morning Mix with Clay” on KXEA. They named the event “Stix vs. Mix Benefit Pickleball Match” and played up the rivalry in social media posts and on-air.
Radford Media Group also reached out for donations of pickle-themed items as a pun on the name of the sport. After receiving more items than expected from several generous sponsors, a silent auction was added to the event, to which additional items–pickle-themed and otherwise–were donated.
The pickleball match–and added silent auction–was held on June 10th, in the parking lot of the Henry County Fairgrounds. The weather threatened rain, but held to a gentle sprinkle. Team Mix, consisting of Clay and Brittany Radford, competed against Team Stix, Steve Stevens and Melody Walker. Former on-air personality Eric Wehmeyer made a guest appearance as referee and announcer. The teams played two rounds of pickleball, both won by Team Mix at 11-8 and 11-7.
The total amount raised from donations and silent auction results–with an additional donation from Radford Media–totaled $3,000. Clay and Brittany Radford, co-owners of Radford Media Group, presented the amount raised to Aimee Kaiser’s twin sister, Anne Osner, pictured here with her two children Brock and Brooklynn.
