Jun
22
FC Barca Unveils a Photo Exhibit in Support of HIV Victims
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First they got to raise yet another coveted trophy. Football Club Barcelona captured the 2009 Champions League title with an exciting defeat of Manchester United. And now, the team is choosing to raise awareness, demonstrating their support for HIV victims in Swaziland.
Earlier this month a photo exhibit was unveiled at the UNICEF headquarters in New York called, Life and Hopes of Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Swaziland.’ It is a moving display of 28 photos that show UNICEF’s work with the young people living with HIV in Swaziland, taken by Catalan photographer Pep Bonet. The photos first debuted in 2007 where they were on display at FC Barcelona’s Camp Nou stadium.
“When I am seeing these pictures, I remember my personal experience in Swaziland,” said Barca President Joan Laporta. “It’s really nice to remember that we are contributing to help these kids. It touches our hearts.”
The FC Barcelona Foundation has been a UNICEF supporter since 2006, agreeing to donate €1.5 million (about $1.9 million) towards UNICEF’s programs annually. The alliance continues through 2011.
The team has a long history of philanthropic activity, and during the first year of the partnership with UNICEF, FC Barcelona’s supported programs benefiting children affected by HIV and AIDS in Swaziland. Swaziland has one of the highest rates of HIV infection in the world. Thousands of children have been orphaned by AIDS, and thousands more are in need of support, protection and treatment.
The photo exhibit will be on display at UNICEF House until the end of August.
How you can get in the game:
Head to the FC Barcelona Foundation website to make donations
See the virtual photo exhibit
May
29
In Washington earlier this month, President Obama proclaimed May National Physical Fitness and Sports Month. His message, to encourage “individuals, businesses, and community organizations to renew their commitment to personal fitness and health,” was one the Denver Nuggets had already begun to embrace. While the team’s immediate concerns now are the Lakers and getting a ticket to the Finals, the organization did make time during the 2008-2009 season to address a major healthcare initiative in its community: childhood obesity.
The Team Fit program partnered the Nuggets with The Children’s Hospital and elementary school children in grades 3 through 8. Its focus was on teaching kids the benefits of proper nutrition and regular physical activity. Schools throughout the metro Denver area signed up classrooms and received fitness tips from the team’s strength and conditioning coaches, a health and wellness poster for each child, and activity worksheets. As a bonus, participants completed fitness logs for a chance to win Nuggets’ prizes, and some students were treated to a visit from the team’s strength and conditioning coach and a member of the team.
With Team Fit, the players and coaches reached over 1,200 young students promoting the importance of a healthy and active lifestyle.
How you can get in the game:
Click here to find out all the Denver Nuggets do for the community
You can also donate to The Children’s Hospital directly.
May
18
Teeing off for Teens
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Today marks the second annual Loudoun Youth Golf Tournament, a charity event that benefits the young people of Loudoun County, Virginia.
Said Carol Kost, Loudoun Youth’s president, “This golf event was a smashing success for us in 2008 and we are intently focused on making this year’s event even more successful. The money we raise through this event is the life-line of funding for youth activities ranging from sports to leadership development to the arts in Loudoun County.”
The event kicked off with a celebrity breakfast, followed by 18 holes on the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Creighton Farms in Leesburg. The day wraps up with a cocktail reception and awards presentation, and then a dinner.
How you can get in the game:
Make your donation through the Loudoun Youth website
May
5
Feeling Pacquiao’s Punch
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Manny Pacquiao has been described as both mild-mannered and hard-hitting, a soft-spoken man who happens to have a crushing left hook. What stands out as more telling about the boxer’s character though might be how he has deeply inspired his countrymen, and become a national hero in his native Philippines.
The past two weeks have been a highlight reel in the boxer’s life, no easy feat considering his exciting bouts and that he has captured titles in four weight divisions, as well as the attention of the world. First he was selected to the TIME 100, the world’s most influential people. Then there was that impressive second-round KO against Britain’s Ricky Hatton, cementing his status as one of the greatest of all time. And to top it off, the Philippines’ government has declared this coming Friday, May 8, a national day of celebration to honor the champion.
Said one government official, “Pacquiao’s spectacular victories show the world the best in the Filipino and that his determination and love of God and country exemplify the indomitable Filipino spirit … and inspires the Filipinos to have resiliency and dedication to triumph against all odds.”
Pacquiao’s reach beyond the boxing ring includes giving back to the community he grew up in. He’s recently given generously to victims in the Philippines after the country was hit by last year’s devastating Typhoon Frank. Last month, he threw out the first pitch at the San Francisco Giants game for the annual Filipino Heritage Night. In a scene that was described as “eerily similar to fight night”, thousands of fans cheered on the boxer, and the baseball team raised roughly $50,000 for charity.
He also started The Manny Pacquiao Foundation last month, with the mission to help improve the lives for all of his countrymen and women in the Philippines.
How you can get in the game:
Make a donation to The Manny Pacquiao Foundation
Apr
6
On a Foundation of Ice
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Tonight in New York, Figure Skating in Harlem, a non-profit whose mission is to transform young lives and help girls to grow in leadership, confidence and academic achievement, will host its fifth annual Skating with the Stars, Under the Stars gala. The event will honor skating legend Tai Babilionia and New York State’s First Lady, Michelle Paige Paterson and will be held from 5:30pm-9pm at Wollman Rink in Central Park.
Established in 1997 with a special visit by Olympic gold medalist Scott Hamilton, Figure Skating in Harlem has served more than one thousand girls with a powerful program that prepares them for success in all aspects of life. FSH works with girls ages 6 to 18 who live in Harlem. Enrollment begins each September.
Future plans for FSH include opening its first Leading Edge Center on 125th Street, a 5,000 square foot space to accommodate the growing demand of our program and services.
How you can get in the game:
To purchase tickets for tonight’s event, click here
You can visit www.charitybuzz.com to find great auction items for bidding online from March 25th-April 21st, 2009.
Donate, volunteer or refer a child, visit the Figure Skating in Harlem foundation website
Mar
13
The foundation created to honor the legacy of the man who broke baseball’s color line has managed to make a name for itself. For more than 35 years, the Jackie Robinson Foundation has been providing not just four-year college scholarships, but also leadership training for minority youths, perpetuating the memory of the pioneer and his achievements.
On Monday, March 16, the Jackie Robinson Foundation will hold its 2009 Annual Awards Dinner. Honored for their humanitarianism, this year’s award recipients include Good Morning America co-host Robin Roberts, world renowned physician, educator and Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at John Hopkins University, Dr. Benjamin Carson, Sr. and actor Robert Redford. The event will take place at New York’s Waldorf Astoria hotel and will be MC’d by comedian Bill Cosby. Proceeds will go toward the foundation’s endowment and scholarship funds.
How you can get in the game:
To support the Jackie Robinson Foundation, make a donation or contribute to the Foundation’s Endowment Fund, click here
For more information about the 2009 Annual Awards Dinner, click here
Feb
9
With its tradition of hosting the Pro Bowl since 1980, Honolulu is a familiar location for the NFL. Star players, veterans and future Hall-of-Famers descend on the Hawaiian city every year, cheered on by thousands of fans. But this past weekend there was even more to cheer about as the league unveiled the new NFL Youth Education Town, a facility set to open in March as the Boys & Girls Club of Hawaii.
YET centers, currently operating in eleven former Super Bowl host cities, are lasting legacies of the NFL’s commitment to positively impact youth in at-risk neighborhoods with education and recreation programs. The Hawaii YET Center, which will serve more than 17,000 youngsters ages 7-17 on Oahu and Kaua, is the only YET facility built outside a Super Bowl host city.
In addition to a $1 million donation from the NFL, the NFL YET Hawaii center will be funded through private and public contributions from the state, city and corporations.
The 10,000-square foot facility includes an outdoor amphitheater, native Hawaiian garden, large multi-purpose community room, library, learning center, computer and technology center and a multimedia studio supported by the Forever Young Foundation. Additionally, the NFL Youth Education Town Hawaii is the first LEED certified after-school facility in the YET network.
The official grand opening next month will include a traditional Hawaiian Blessing and Community Open House where kids will be invited to a day of fun and discovery.
How you can get in the game:
Make donations directly to the Boys & Girls Club of Hawaii
Visit the NFL Youth Education Towns site
Jan
30
Bowling night took on a special meaning yesterday in Tampa, as more than 20 football greats, guests and fans participated in the fourth annual NFL Super Bowl Celebrity Bowling Classic.
Fans joined teams, each captained by a former pro football player, and everyone bowled to raise money for the NFL Youth Education Town, an initiative that provides education and mentoring services to at-risk youth. The NFL establishes these learning and recreational centers in cities hosting Super Bowls.
“The Super Bowl Celebrity Bowling Classic is a fantastic event and a tremendous amount of fun for both the players and fans who participate,” said former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Lynn Swann, who returned as event spokesperson for the third consecutive year. “Most importantly, the tournament benefits a truly worthy cause, and I am extremely proud to again lend my support.”
How you can get in the game:
Make your donations at NFL Charities
Dec
12
The Sports Gifts that Keep on Giving
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In the spirit of the season, I thought I’d write a post that offers suggestions for non-traditional holiday presents. With these alternatives, you can give a gift and make a difference.
Cooking for a Cause
A recipe in The Sunday Night Football Cookbook will have you serving up Tiki Barber’s Korean-Style Short Ribs. If that’s not enough to satisfy your palette, with your purchase you not only get a presentation of 150 tasty recipes, you get to make a donation to food banks across America. Favre, Madden, Costas – they are just a few of the NFL players and alumni, NBC Sports’ on-air team and top chefs from all 31 NFL cities, represented in the book.
Proceeds from the book go to the Taste of the NFL, an annual Super Bowl event that gathers chefs from around the nation to raise money for Feeding America, which bills itself as the nation’s largest domestic charitable hunger-relief organization.
Great chefs, great athletes and a great cause, all rolled into one.
For more information: www.tasteofthenfl.com
The Gift of a Game
Since 1994, Tickets for Kids Charities has given disadvantaged children opportunities to attend meaningful events and activities, like the theater, museums and concerts. Donors can also make a monetary contribution or designate tickets for a specific sporting event. In Pittsburgh, where the foundation is based, that could mean giving the gift of taking in the hockey action at a Penguins game. You can make a child’s day by treating them to game night at Mellon Arena.
To make donations go to the website or call: www.ticketsforkids.org; 412-781-5437
For the Green Sports Fan
For the perfect sustainable substitute to animal-skin athletic equipment, why not make your holiday purchases socially conscious? At fairtradesports.com you can purchase union-made, vegan, and eco- and fair trade-certified gear such as footballs, volleyballs and soccer balls. Plus they have tons of sweat-shop free athletic apparel.
For more information: www.fairtradesports.com
Five Golden Rings
With the London 2012 Olympics in sight, KIDS, a UK-based foundation, wants to focus on healthy initiatives this holiday season. That means getting children active. This year KIDS has helped more than 6,000 disabled children and at the same time provided support for their family as well. A donation as a holiday gift would help pay for adventure trail equipment at one of organization’s inclusive Adventure Playgrounds, as part of their ‘Healthy and Active Kids’ project.
For more information: Healthy and Active Kids
Food Drive
The NBA’s Bulls are partnering with a local vendor to host a holiday food drive on Saturday, December 20 to benefit the Greater Chicago Food Depository. President-elect Barack Obama and his family contributed to a member agency of this organization for Thanksgiving.
Before the home game against the Utah Jazz, fans can drop off non-perishable food items at any of the United Center admission gates. High protein foods in unbreakable containers, baby foods, and diapers and hygiene products are what the Food Depository recommends. The not-for-profit locally distributes donated and purchased food through a network of 600 food pantries, soup kitchens and shelters to almost a half-million adults and children every year. Not in Chicago, no problem. Assist online in the virtual food drive at Bulls.com.
For more information: www.chicagofoodbank.org; 773-247-FOOD.
Nov
20
Matters of the Heart
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No monitors, no resuscitators, no incubators. And that meant no opportunity for post-operatic treatment for pediatric heart patients at the Hospital de Clinicas in Asunción, Paraguay.
But thanks to a major assist from the NBA’s Steve Nash, who is a perennial league leader in assists on the court, all that has changed. Working with his foundation two years ago, the Sun’s point guard founded and outfitted Centro Materno Infantil, a post-operatic neonatal intensive care unit at the hospital. The center allows for newborn and children up to age 18 to have cardiac surgeries and procedures they previously had to travel out of the country for.
And this is only one example of how the Steve Nash Foundation is assisting under-served children around the globe. It is also why the two-time NBA MVP was honored earlier this year with the 2008 Steve Patterson Award for Excellence in Sports Philanthropy. The award, given annually by the Sports Philanthropy Project and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, will be presented to Nash tonight before the Phoenix and Los Angeles game.
How you can get in the game:
To find out how to make a contribution or volunteer, visit the Steve Nash Foundation website
Follow these links for more information on the Steve Patterson Award for Excellence in Sports Philanthropy, the Sports Philanthropy Project and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
