Simpson T-shirts, sweatshirts and coffee mugs make perfect holiday presents for anyone – whether it’s for mom, dad or great aunt Ethel and now thanks to the number of venues in the area that sell Simpson gear it’s even easier to make these gift purchases.

“Oh, gosh, the bookstore has sweatshirts, long-sleeve shirts, crew-neck shirts, athletic shorts as well as short-shorts,” senior Amy Templeton said. “It also has gift wear, coffee mugs, and there’s a glass case with more upscale items.”

Templeton has been a work-study aid for the Simpson bookstore for more than three years and she said the bookstore generally has more customers during the holidays because students buy Simpson gear for their friends and families.

“I only work four hours a week and it’s in the mornings – not many kids actually get up in the mornings to come to the bookstore,” Templeton said. “But I know we have a steady pace this time of year.”

That steady pace however may slow down once word about the Simpson College Gold Club Web site hits campus. The site, OfficialSimpsonGear.com, is specifically designed to sell merchandise and raise money for Simpson athletics.

“Fifty percent of our profits goes to Simpson athletics,” Gold Club President Steve Saylor said. “The other fifty goes to our organization so that we can sponsor athletic banquets, plaques, additions to the weight room and trophy cases.”

Saylor, a pharmacist at the Indianola Hy-Vee, has been involved with Simpson athletics for almost 20 years. He says the Gold Club “dabbled” in the apparel business for a while, selling merchandise during football and basketball games but wanted a way to reach more customers.

“The issue was we couldn’t get to everyone,” Saylor said. “There were alumni and parents who couldn’t make it to the games – we still wanted to provide them with gear.”

Saylor believes he and the Gold Club are no threat to Simpson’s bookstore, in fact, Saylor thinks his organization and the bookstore share many similarities.

“I don’t think we’re in competition, we don’t go head to head,” Saylor said. “We have a different style, a different look but we’re all trying to promote Simpson College – so in a way we’re working in conjunction with them.”

The Gold Club isn’t the only organization raising money for Simpson organizations. Many teams and clubs also sell merchandise to raise money for equipment, trips and uniforms.

Beavers, and other members of the baseball team fund raise each year by selling Simpson baseball gear to their friends and family.

“The money from our baseball T-shirt sales goes toward the cost of going to Arizona – where we play ten games within that week of spring break,” senior baseball player Terry Beavers said in an e-mail interview.

He added that the fund raiser also helps supply the team.

“The money also goes toward this package deal we have for shoes, cleats, hooded sweatshirt, shorts and sweats.”

This year Beavers sent out a mass e-mail in search of those interested in buying T-shirts. He said the response was better than he had expected.

“Everybody has been sending me e-mails, which I am grateful,” Beavers said.

“I talked to a couple of guys on the team that are having a tough time selling – I said I would give them some of mine to help everybody out.”

Beavers said buying and wearing Simpson gear from anywhere is good but, according to him, there are some perks to buying it from the baseball team.

“Ours are not rip-offs and are only $12 – and they’re nice looking shirts,” Beavers said. “They go to a good cause and come in a variety of colors this year, plus they’re Adidas and you can’t go wrong with Adidas.”