photo by: Richard Gwin

The East All Stars warm up prior to kickoff of the 39th Kansas Shrine Bowl at Emporia State in this file photo from July 28, 2012.

Two recent area high school graduates are slated to participate in the 50th all-time Kansas Shrine Bowl on Saturday night at Fort Hays State University.

Free State offensive lineman Kaden Lonard and Eudora safety Kale Hammerschmidt will represent their respective high school alma maters with the “East Team” in the annual nonprofit charity football game supporting children’s medical facilities across the country.

Since the Shrine Bowl’s inception, the annual two-day event has raised over $3.7 million for Shriners Hospitals for Children. The weekend begins on Friday with the Shrine Bowl Hospital Experience, where players and coaches can visit with the game’s beneficiaries, on campus at Fort Hays.

The surrounding atmosphere makes for an exciting weekend, Hammerschmidt said.

“It’ll be a very humbling experience,” Hammerschmidt, who’ll continue playing football at Washburn this fall, said. “Some of these kids may not have the opportunities that I have to play sports and do what I love. It’s going to be a cool experience to see their perseverance, just how they keep pushing and how that changes their outlook on life.”

Friday will also include a charity golf tournament and 50th-anniversary celebration banquet for the Shrine Bowl at Fort Hays State’s Memorial Union.

Saturday, the annual Shrine Bowl parade will make its way through downtown Hays. Following the parade, Lonard and Hammerschmidt will participate in an autograph session with the East and West teams before the gates open at 5 p.m. at Lewis Field Stadium.

For Lonard, a Lawrence native, the opportunity to play for charity means the world to his family.

“This is a game that’s very heavily respected within the state of Kansas,” Lonard, who’ll play football at Fort Hays State next season, said. “Just being able to go out there and represent Lawrence, my school and Douglas County one last time will be very cool just so I can leave my lasting impact.”

Alumni of the Shrine Bowl include many of the state’s football notables, such as Wichita native and Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders; Kansas State and former All-Pro receiver Jordy Nelson; former All-Pro defensive back Terence Newman; former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman B.J. Finney and many more. Sanders will be in attendance at this year’s game, according to organizers.

Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. Fans can learn more about Saturday’s game through the Shrine Bowl’s official website.