Coach CJ event raises funds for scholarships

From the left: John Cascella, Nancy Joyner, Casey Tripp, and Kristin Joyner.

Members of the Falls Church High School and Holmes Run Pool communities gathered at the Annandale Fire Station March 7 for food, dancing, and a silent auction.

It was the sixth annual Coach CJ Celebration hosted by Nancy Joyner to celebrate the life of her son, Clayton Joyner, and to raise money for scholarships for Falls Church seniors. Clayton, a popular swimming coach at the high school and Holmes Run Pool, died in 2014.

Fun times at the 2020 Coach CJ Celebration.

The 2020 scholarship recipients are Casey Tripp and John Cascella. They each received $2,000.

“Swimming was a big part of my life,” says Casey, who started swimming for the Holmes Run Hurricanes at age 6 under Coach CJ and was captain of the Falls Church Swim and Dive team.

Related story: Local swimmers mourn loss of popular coach Clayton Joyner

Casey was also on the volleyball and tennis teams at FCHS and has a 3.9 GPA. She plans to go to either Virginia Tech or James Madison University.

John had also served as captain of the FCHS swim team and was on the track and field team. He will be heading to Arizona State University.

Coach CJ “was a big role model to all of us on the team,” Casey says.