The LA84 Foundation announced this week that it was awarding more than $1.7 million in grants to benefit 18 organizations and support their efforts to bring sports programs to thousands of children.
The LA84 Foundation is an organization focused on promoting youth sport programs and bolstering public education about the importance of play in youth development. These grants are intended to improve access to sports, play and movement, according to the foundation.
In San Diego County, first-time recipient Backcountry Communities Thriving, located in the city of Julian, will serve 500 youths engaging in multiple sports districtwide.
BCT received a $95,000 grant that is intended to support the local school district’s renovations, including upgrades to its weight room, creating a cardio room, resurfacing the tennis and pickleball courts, and installing a practice golf course. About 21% of Julian High School’s population is identified as having special needs, according to the LA84 Foundation.
Another first-time recipient, Best STEP Forward in Imperial County, received $160,000 to support its adaptive sports programming for youth. Its program offers daily adaptive sports and structured play activities such as baseball, soccer, dance and soapbox racing.
The organization works with children, and offers programming for kids with specialized needs.
“Thank you all for dedicating time to meeting our team; traveling down deep south to meet us means more than you could imagine. We usually are not given this type of attention, and it makes us very happy to know we have allies nearby that believe in the mission.” Jacqueline Riddle, co-founder of Best STEP Forward, said in a statement.
“For four decades, the LA84 Foundation has supported programs across Southern California that work to remove barriers for kids who lack access to sports and play,” Renata Simril, president and chief executive officer of the LA84 Foundation, said in a statement.
“The grants we announce today will continue to make sports accessible and enjoyable for kids across the region, regardless of income or geography.”
She added, “Life lessons like teamwork, physical and mental health, and safety are essential elements to healthy youth development and a key ingredient to the success of the LA84 Foundation’s legacy.”
Grants ranged from $15,000 to $225,000 for first-time recipients, such as the Boys & Girls Club of Buena Park, who received funding for daily organized sports activities like badminton, basketball, rock climbing and flag football.
Other recipients included organizations such as various Boys and & Girls Clubs across SoCal, A Place Called Home, the Rose Bowl Aquatic Center, Playworks, and Up2Us Sports, which received grants to support sports programs such as soccer, swimming, squash, tennis, running, basketball and volleyball.
The largest grant was awarded to Playworks, which received $225,000 to serve more than 35,000 youth in Los Angeles and Orange counties, supporting recess and lunchtime structured play in “high-need” schools, officials said.
City News Service contributed to this report.
