Vilonia Eagle NestCollective Become a memberJoin

Invest in theNest.

Every Eagle. Every sport. From $20 a month.

Vilonia players in red jerseys celebrate on the field under the lights after beating Greenbrier in 2011, as their coach gets doused with ice water.
Beating Greenbrier, 2011.Photo: 501 Life

The Eagle Nest Collective is an alumni-run fund for Vilonia athletics, set up separately from the school. Members give $20 a month or more, about what a gym membership costs, and a volunteer board decides where every dollar goes.

You don’t need to write a big check to help. Set up a monthly draft once, then change it or cancel it whenever you want.

Become a member See the numbers
Football field video board First project
Committed $175,000
To go $200,000
Goal $375,000 · 47% committed Target: 2027 season
The new board will be used for football, soccer, and track and field, at every age level. Ad revenue from the board goes straight to the football program.

Why now

Schools in our classification keep building. We’ve been standing still.

Phillip D. Weaver Stadium in Vilonia: the home stands, press box, and field with VILONIA EAGLES across the front wall.
Phillip D. Weaver Stadium today

Nobody’s blaming the district here. State money covers the basics, and it was never going to stretch much further than that.

Every year another school we compete with puts in turf, opens a field house, or adds a video board. Vilonia hasn’t been able to keep up, and our kids notice. So do the families thinking about moving here.

A booster club usually raises money for one sport, one season at a time. The Collective works a little differently. A lot of people give a little every month, the money gets pooled, and a board puts it toward facilities that help every sport.

Separate from the school

We raise the money first. Once a project is fully funded, we bring it to the district.

A board decides spending

Alumni and community volunteers approve every project and report back on what was spent.

Every sport benefits

Football, soccer, track, and whatever programs come along after them.

The numbers

Small monthly gifts add up fast.

Here’s what the fund brings in at the $20 minimum, depending on how many people join.

Members Per year
500A strong first year
$120,000$10,000 a month
2,000Enough for a big project every year
$480,000$40,000 a month
10,000Where we want to get to
$2.4M$200,000 a month

At 2,000 members, the fund covers a project the size of the video board in under a year. Totals are before card processing fees. Anyone giving more than $20 pushes these numbers higher.

Not just football

Every sport. Every season.

The Vilonia student section packed into the gym bleachers at a basketball game, the front row in jean shorts and black Eagles shirts pointing at the camera, with the band behind them.
The jort squad, basketball season
The Vilonia student section packed against the rail at a night game, arms up, with two young kids up front holding mini footballs. Students in matching Vilonia Eagles shirts sitting in the bleachers next to the Eagle mascot.
Vilonia students in pink shirts and face paint cheering in the stands at a pink-out game. A group of Vilonia students in cutoff jean shorts and Eagles student section shirts posing by the field rail under the lights.
A student in a Vilonia letterman jacket yells from the rail as another cheers through a megaphone, with smoke drifting through the stands. A student runs the Eagles flag down the track past the cheerleaders, with the team and the old scoreboard behind them. A referee signals touchdown as Vilonia players raise their arms over a pile of blue-jerseyed defenders.

Friday nights in Vilonia

Membership

Pick your level.

Every level pays for the same work. The higher levels come with some recognition and perks, which we’re still working out with the district.

  1. $20/mo
    Member$240 a year

    A membership card, your name in the annual report, and a say in the member survey that helps pick projects.

  2. $50/mo
    Nest Builder$600 a year

    Everything above, plus your name on the donor wall at the complex and an invite to the annual meeting.

  3. $100/mo
    Talon Club$1,200 a year

    Everything above, plus priority when requesting season tickets and first crack at new seating as it goes in.

  4. $250/mo
    Eagle Circle$3,000 a year

    Everything above, plus first priority on reserved seats with cushioned backs between the 40s. This depends on district approval and what’s available.

  5. Custom
    Businesses and larger giftsOne time or monthly

    Video board ads, naming a project, and business sponsorships are handled one on one. Reach out and we’ll walk you through it.

Become a member

Join the Nest.

Pick how much and how often. You can change it or cancel anytime from your account.

Vilonia players huddle under the lights and lift the Judges Cup trophy and their helmets overhead after the game.
Winning the Judges Cup
  • $20 a month minimum, no maximum
  • Drafted automatically on the same day each month
  • Change your amount or cancel whenever you want
  • A receipt for every payment
Amount
Your level Member
Over a year $240

Payments aren’t hooked up yet. This form is here to show how it’ll work at the launch meeting.

Questions

Before you join.

If yours isn’t here, ask us. We’ll add the answer to this page.

The Vilonia team runs onto the field behind an Eagles flag and an American flag, through a tunnel of color guard flags, with the band and home crowd behind them.
Band, color guard, team, and the home crowd
Who decides how the money gets spent?

A volunteer board of alumni and community members. They approve every project before any money is committed, and they publish what was spent and where. Members also get surveyed before the next project is picked.

Does the school control the money?

No. The Collective is set up separately from Vilonia schools and holds the funds itself. When a project is fully paid for, we take it to the district. The district decides whether to accept it, and the Collective decides what gets funded.

Is my gift tax-deductible?

We’re still getting the Collective officially organized. Once our tax status is confirmed, we’ll post it right here, before we take any payments. Until then, please don’t count on a deduction, and check with your tax advisor about your own situation.

Can I cancel or change my amount?

Yes, anytime, from your account. There’s no fee and you don’t have to explain anything. Canceling stops your next draft.

Why monthly instead of one big fundraiser?

Because a lot more people can do $20 a month than can write one large check. Steady money every month also lets the board plan projects that take longer than a year, instead of starting from zero every spring.

What happens after the video board?

The board picks the next project, with input from members. The plan is to spread the work across sports instead of sticking with one program. The video board just happens to be first because it’s the furthest along.