“Be a Game Changer!”
This is the call to action of more than thirty Healthy Futures Ambassadors this week as they reach out and ask Alaskans to give what they can to help get disadvantaged kids in get in the game.
One if five Alaska youth hover near or below the poverty line.
Celebrity athletes, public figures, coaches, and community leaders have been recruited to raise awareness about a grant program for underserved young Alaskans. Through the Healthy Futures Game Changer Fund kids, families, coaches, teachers, and sports teams can apply for assistance to help them participate in sports and recreation.
The Game Changer Campaign is a one-week fundraising competition running Oct. 17th – 23rd, the ambassadors will work to collectively to try to raise $50,000 that will be immediately available to families-in-need.
The Game Changer Fund provides up to $500 grants that can provide financial support for everything from sports equipment, registration fees, transportation support, facility rentals, to just putting sneakers or boots on a kid.
“71% of schools in Alaska qualify as Title 1 due to high percentages of students living below poverty level,” said Healthy Futures executive director Harlow Robinson. “Those kids have less access to sports and recreation opportunities, and this has a negative impact across all aspects of their lives moving forward. We’re doing what we can to change that.”
Alaskans can support their favorite ambassador while making a direct and lasting impact in the lives of our economically disadvantaged youth. They can also choose to create their own team and join the competition and win prizes for reaching goals.
In September 2021, Healthy Futures absorbed The Basics and Kicks for Kids, two programs that have worked around Alaska over the past decade to remove economic barriers to youth participation in sports and recreation. The work is continuing under a new name and management.
“We were saddened to learn The Basics was going away because they’ve been filling an important role in Alaska,” said Robinson. “I’m glad Healthy Futures was able to take the torch.”
Since the start of the year, Healthy Futures has awarded Game Changer grants to dozens of students aged K-12 from across the sate with a variety of needs. Grants this year have provided sports equipment, support with club soccer registration, coverage of equestrian horse camp fees, kick-sleds for a rural youth dog-sled program, wrestling shoes for a high school team, winter boots, sneakers, and much more.
“The list goes on and on,” said Robinson. “It feels good to help, but honestly, we’re just scratching the surface at this point.”
The nonprofit organization is partnering with an all-star roster of ambassadors to support the cause. Paralympic skier Andrew Kurka, reality TV star Ariel Tweto, basketball player DaJonee Hale, Anchorage Wolverines Head Coach Evan Trupp, Alaska Chief Medical Officer Dr. Anne Zink, and Alaska Native Games legend Nicole Johnston are just a few of the campaign’s ambassadors.
For Hale, her role as an ambassador is personal. She was three-time All-American basketball player at Southern Methodist University and played professional basketball in Europe. But at one time Hale had been a homeless teenager in Anchorage feeling hopeless. She credits a supportive community that provided her with a chance to put her life on a different track.
“Having that support allowed me to have long-term goals like playing basketball and going to college,” said Hale.
Hale is currently the program manager at Point Source Youth, working to address youth homelessness.
Both donors and potential recipients can learn more about the Healthy Futures Game Changer Fund on the Healthy Futures Website at https://healthyfuturesak.org/community-support/game-changer-fund-kicks-for-kids/.
Individuals or businesses can either select an ambassador’s team to donate to or create their own Game Changer Campaign fundraising team at https://www.classy.org/campaign/game-changer-fund-fundraiser-2022/c420531 and be eligible to win prizes.
Healthy Futures is the signature program of the Alaska Sports Hall of Fame, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. The goal of the organization is to empower Alaska’s youth to build the habit of daily physical activity.
Game Changer Ambassadors
Alev Kelter, Professional rugby player
Alysa Horn, Coach and fitness/wellness trainer
Andrew Kurka, Paralympic skier
Anna and Kristy Berington, Iditarod mushers
Anna Dalton, Marathon runner, business leader
Archie Young, Mount Edgecumbe High teacher and coach
Ariel Tweto, Realtiy TV star
Carey Carpenter, Youth physical activity advocate
Carol Seppilu, Ultra Runner, suicide survivor
Carrie Jokiel, Alaska Sports Hall of Fame director, former college hockey player
Chad Bentz, Former professional baseball player, Juneau Douglas High athletic director,
Danonee Hale, Former pro basketball player, homeless youth advocate
Dave Barney, Boys and Girls Club director
David Norris, World cup skier, mountain running star
Doug Herron, Alaska Running Academy founder and coach
Dr. Anne Zink, Alaska Chief Medical Officer
Erin Kirkland, Youth wellness and fitness community leader
Evan Trupp, Anchorage Wolverines head coach
Holly Brooks, Former Olympic skier, youth sports counselor
Jo Reid, Alaska Youth Soccer Club director
Kara Moriarty, Community and business leader
Kathleen Navarre, Dimond High flag football coach, sports administrator
Kieth Perkins, Southeast sports official and broadcaster
Lisa Keller, APRN broadcaster, running coach
Matt Carle, Alaska Sports Hall of Fame director, former college basketball player
Matt Froehle, Bartlett High and Cook Inslet Soccer Club coach
Megan Olson, Former UAA Chancellor
Melissa DeVaughn, Chugiak High School track coach
Nicole Johnston, Alaska Native Games legend, NYO director
Norm Rousey, Colony High cross country coach
Rich Krupa, Sitka High activities director, teacher, coach
Rick Hansen, Alaska Sports Hall of Fame director, ultra runner
Steve Zanazzo, Lathrop High School athletic director
Tobin Karlberg, College basketball player
Todd Boonstra, Kenai Central High cross country coach, teacher
Zoe Hickel, Former pro hockey player, Ohio State coach