Mom raises thousands for water polo

By Chris Furnari

Many would call her the men's water polo team mom, but Lois Oda prefers a more professional title: "Parent-Alumni Support Coordinator."

Oda, who currently has one son, junior Luke Oda, on the men's team, does way more than hand out oranges and juice boxes at the end of matches. Aside from fundraising thousands of dollars each year for the program, Oda attends nearly every game the Broncos have on their schedule. Not a big deal, right?

Think again. Oda, who resides in Honolulu, Hawaii, comes to about 90 percent of the team's games, home or away. "She has some kind of air pass that allows her to follow us all over the place," said head coach Keith Wilbur.

Lois Oda has been playing the role of team mom for over six years now. It began in 2001, when her oldest son Mark decided to attend Santa Clara to play water polo.

Both Mark and Luke attended Iolani School in Hawaii, a prestigious high school with numerous sports championships to its name. Oda, who did the majority of the fund raising for Iolani, was used to seeing her kids playing in new uniforms, carrying around embroidered gear and taking team trips across the country.

"When I came to watch Mark in his first game, the only thing the players had were Speedos," said Oda. "I was shocked, because in high school, the team had all kinds of gear."

Since that day, Oda has made it her mission to help out the team as much as possible. She began by forming a group consisting of fellow parents, alumni and friends in an effort to raise money for the program.

In her first year she raised nearly $3,000. The money raised by the group gets delegated to a restricted fund that only the men's water polo team can access.

In her second year heading the group, Oda nearly doubled the money raised during the first year and was able to provide the team with funds for new gear and more team trips.

However, Oda's generosity doesn't stop there. She sends out multiple monthly e-mails to alumni and to parents involved with the group, coordinates team dinners and still has time to be a part of the National Events Committee for U.S. Water Polo.

Perhaps Oda's best attribute is her ability to get so many other individuals involved. Many other team parents now make attending games a priority, even after their sons have graduated. Others find ways to contribute by making DVD highlight videos for all the players or taking team photographs.

"She just has a lot of energy and a lot of passion," said Wilbur. "She does everything she possibly can to help our program."

Oda is constantly on the lookout for a donor to sponsor the construction of a new, regulation-size pool.

"I've tried like heck to win it in Vegas, but so far no luck," said Oda jokingly.

Oda's fund raising has allowed the team to travel to the East Coast to face new, tough competition. A few years ago, such a trip was unrealistic.

And what does she get in return?

"I get lots of hugs from the guys," said Oda modestly.

Oda also stated that she plans on continuing her support even after her son Luke graduates.

"I'd like to help the sport grow, especially at Santa Clara because I think it is such a great program," Oda said.

With Oda, this year's fundraising figures are at a record high for the program.

A large portion of that money came after the death of her husband Stephen in May of last year. Following his death, the family requested that donations be made in his name to the program.

In lieu of flowers, many contributions were made to the team's funds. While not complete, fundraising this year is at nearly $14,000. Oda said she is hoping for even more.

"If you know anyone who would like to donate a swimming pool, let me know," said Oda.

Both players and Wilbur said Oda is an asset to the program that is greatly appreciated.

"Lois is an extremely committed mother, whose sacrifices have helped build our program to reach new levels of success," said senior Robert Callahan.

Callahan also dispelled the rumor that Oda merely receives hugs in return for her generosity.

"We generally get her flowers, and some sort of gift, and honor her contributions at the end of the year banquet," said Callahan.

Lois Oda has created an enormous network of parents, alumni and friends that now follow the men's water polo team.

Her impact has been great enough that the team has named the annual banquet after her late husband Stephen. Oda, however, said she contributes for nothing more than the pure love of the game.

Contact Chris Furnari at (408) 551-1918 or cfurnari@scu.edu.