The Black Widow girls Softball Team in Rupert has received $1,000 from U.S. Cellular for equipment and sweat shirts that were damaged in the 2016 floods.

U.S. Cellular’s Community Connections program helps youth groups pay for uniforms, equipment, travel and other group expenses. The team signed up at www.uscellular.com/communityconnections and then rallied their friends, families and supporters to complete online activities that earned them the money.

“Organizations like The Black Widows Softball Team provide valuable experiences for our local youth, and we are happy to support them through this program,” said Brandi McCune, area sales manager at U.S. Cellular. “It’s also great to see our fellow community members rally around this group to help them have a positive impact in Greenbrier County.”

“Thanks to our sponsorship with U.S. Cellular we were able to purchase our girls much needed equipment. The sweat shirts really came in handy as we played many early season games in the rain and snow. We were also able to purchase each player a T-shirt with names and numbers, and new catchers gear set. Without this sponsorship our team wouldn’t have been able to provide these items. They even came out and presented our girls with a check for all their hard work. They are an awesome company with an excellent community program. We appreciate their willingness to help out community programs like ours,” said Robin Fields, captain of the Black Widows Softball Team.

The team has been playing together for two years with ages ranging from 9 to 11-years-old at various softball fields in Greenbrier County. The team lost everything in the 2016 flood, including equipment and uniforms, and even the field was destroyed.

This is the fourth consecutive year of the Community Connections program, and in that time, U.S. Cellular has awarded $1.3 million to more than 2,800 groups, including sports teams, STEM programs, marching bands and dance squads.