MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN A CHILD'S LIFE BEGINS WITH YOU
Through structured sports program, children gain a much better perspective of what life can offer & seize the opportunity to develop academic, social & lifetime skills needed to overcome day to day challenges. Our organized sports programs are designed provide a confluence of factors that will restore hope & subsequently drive underserved communities out of poverty.
Community Based Coaching Clinics
Without bringing programs to underserved rural communities, we have little or no direct access to impact at risk children. Our community-based sport clinics present a variety of sports and activities aimed at serving children of all ages and all levels of abilities. With support & training materials from game experts in the USA, we hold annual coaching clinics at community level that gives us insight into real time social dynamics of the kids. We partner with the teaching community that we train & certify to teach kids sound game fundamentals. Our coaches also serve as mentors for children whose parents have succumbed to the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
Volunteer Coaches Training Program
The pivotal arm of the program is to build capacity by training local volunteer coaches that work with kids on a continous basis to foster program sustainability & longevity. Training teachers as volunteer coaches creates a comfort zone for children & a sense of trust in the community. Since the program debut in 2012, the Jack Ramsay Grassroots Basketball Initiative has certified more than 1000 coaches and impacted up to 5000 children across the country.
The Grassroots Approach
Grassroots youth sport programs provide a strategic platform to deploy change processes necessary to break the poverty cycle & develop next generation of leadership. Communities must undergo a complete paradigm shift in order to breakdown social barriers & position children for long term prosperity. This strategy feeds into early intervention strategies for behavioral modification process. Our program deploys trophies & medals as a positive reenforcement tool to recognize & reward outstanding performance. Thanks to our friends at Bardach Awards, Indianapolis, we get to recycle, & replate collected trophies, medals & awards from the USA for donation to our program participants in Zimbabwe.
Infrastructure Development
Low innovation & impactful developmental initiatives change the way communities approach life. A Can-Do-Attitude allows communities to utilize available resources to develop functional sports infrastructure for the benefit of children. We assist the rural schools communities in Zimbabwe in paving dirt basketball courts using farm brick. This approach was developed by Ted DeWolf an American missionary living in Zimbabwe. Such a structure has a low upfront cost and comes with no maintanace costs.
Officials Training/Certification
Using acquired resources from game experts from the USA, we successfully train coaches and officials to develop the sport locally. Training programs are structured in a way that involves in class & game based scenarios. Every year, our staff travel to Zimbabwe to conduct such training clinics and work with children. Camp participants get a chance to receive and keep a copy of the training resources for reference purposes. They also receive a certificate they can hang on the wall for motivational purposes.
Medals/Travel Trophies
As part of our collection drives, we collect & accept trophies/medals to support our youth sports leagues in Zimbabwe. We deploy trophies & medals as a positive reenforcement tool to recognize & reward outstanding performance. Thanks to our friends at Bardach Awards, Indianapolis, we get to recycle, & replate collected trophies, medals & awards from the USA for donation to our program participants in Zimbabwe. The initiative has scored huge successes considering the majority of children have never received a medal or trophy inter lifetime.
Sports Gear Assist
A central component of our program is for children to be involved in structured program that allows them to learn habit success patterns of life. The strategy is to have schools within close proximity of each other to compete with one another for travel trophies. All donated gear has successfully been channelled towards supporting the district wide sports programs. Structured programs allow children to learn sound fundamentals of the game and compete with one another.
Level The Playing Field For Girls
Sport is a good starting point to address the acute imbalance of scales tipping against girls in participation & leadership. Our program mandates equal representation of girls in order to avert long term socio-economic costs, associated with gender inequality. Since deploying our program in Zimbabwe, we have witnessed 30% increase of girls taking part in sport.
A central component of our program is for children to be involved in structured program that allows them to learn habit success patterns of life. The strategy is to have schools within close proximity of each other to compete with one another for travel trophies. All donated gear has successfully been channelled towards supporting the district wide sports programs. Structured programs allow children to learn sound fundamentals of the game and compete with one another.
A Word From Coach Jack Ramsay - NBA Hall of Fame & Legend
“Although the game has become more sophisticated, simpler is better in developing and teaching a system of play.”