A new awareness of poverty among many young Austinites led a team of five sophomores in the Austin High Global Studies Academy [6] to donate “gently used” sports equipment to the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Austin Area [7]. Which was their biggest surprise? The support they received from their high school athletic department and a middle school principal or the excitement on the faces of the youngsters who now have more bats, balls, mitts and racquets with which to play? Brett Barrier, Kendall Brewer, Daniel Laden, Reed Mershon and Riley Longtain spearheaded the equipment drive.
Recently, we discovered that even a bunch of 16-year-old students could make a difference in our community. You are never too young to better the world around you. In our short lives, we have been active participants in nearly every activity out there, ranging from football to piano. Research shows that participation in sports, and other extra curricular activities, plays a positive role in child development. For us, the most difficult thing is balancing all of our activities in our already full schedules. For kids in poverty, however, sports organizations can be hard to come by. When we were asked to research a global issue impacting our local community, we learned some shocking things about poverty.
Over 80 percent of the world lives on less than $10 a day. In the United States alone, 15 million children (21 percent) are part of families with incomes sinking below the federal poverty line (National Center for Children in Poverty [8]). Over half of the students in the Austin Independent School District are eligible for free and reduced lunch. Solving a problem like poverty might seem impossible, but there are a few people in Austin with a vision for a change. Aside from affecting things like a child’s access to food and water, poverty puts children at a higher risk for behavioral and emotional issues. Athletics makes a difference, not just physically, but on a psychological and social level, too.
Our love for sports, and our concern about global poverty, led us to the Boys & Girls Clubs [7], an inspiring organization that helps create a safe, welcoming environment for children to grow and develop, while being surrounded by positive influences. Simply put, their mission is “to inspire and enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to realize their full potential as productive, responsible and caring citizens.”
Daniel had been to the local Boys & Girls Clubs [7] before, with the Austin High football team, and one of the things he’d noticed was that there were plenty of kids around, but not a lot of equipment with which to play. So we came up with a vision for change all on our own: spread the wealth. We could donate some of our “gently used” sports equipment and get other kids in our neighborhoods, whose garages are filled with bats, rackets, balls, and mitts, to share their “wealth,” too. We looked for more visionaries and leaders, right in our neighborhood.
Pete Price, principal of O. Henry Middle School [9], saw the potential in our vision and helped it take flight by allowing us to set up a donation box in the main office. "O. Henry Middle School strongly supports students reaching out beyond the four walls of the classroom and addressing the many needs of our community. It is exciting for us to see our former students dedicated to helping those who are less fortunate,” Mr. Price told us.
We were honestly not expecting much, maybe a few old basketballs and a tennis racket, so we were shocked to see the mountain of equipment spilling out of our collection box when we went to pick it up at O. Henry. It was truly an amazing sight. We were also quite pleased with the amount of equipment we received from our own Austin High [10]; the athletic department made a massive contribution of gently used sports apparel.
We were very excited when the day came to go to the Boys & Girls Clubs [7] to donate all that we had collected, and a little nervous too, afraid they wouldn’t really care. We brought all we had collected from O. Henry and Austin High, as well as quite a bit of our personal equipment to donate. As soon as we stepped out of our cars holding all the equipment, we were instantly surrounded by a bunch of smiling, excited children. When we set the equipment down at the place designated for donations, the kids immediately dove into it! They brought out footballs, basketballs, and baseball bats, all with huge smiles on their faces and begging for us to play with them.
We had originally planned to be on our way once the donation was complete, but when we saw the eager, elated faces of the clubbers we decided to stick around and put some of the equipment to good use with some of the kids. We had a blast playing football and baseball with them. In fact, we were having so much fun that we ended up staying for the next two hours.
Boys & Girls Clubs [7] really is inspiring young athletes. When we talked to 8-year-old Keishon about his plans for college football, he listed his positions: “Receiver…and quarterback…and linebacker.” Keishon’s eagerness and motivation made the success of the Boys & Girls Clubs [7] clear. It was truly a wonderful experience to see the positive impact that we had had on these children.
Poverty is a very real, important issue in modern society, especially for children, but it’s not so hard to make a difference. Gangs, drugs, and alcohol can be enticing, but so can a pick-up game of soccer. Devotion to a team leads to the feelings of belonging and self-worth that we all crave. Boys & Girls Clubs [7] sees this truth, and strives to make these feelings readily available to all children. We are all now committed to small changes making big differences, too.