LETT 'em play: Tennis Anyone?

LETT, Learning Excellence Through Tennis, is a small nonprofit serving Birmingham, Alabama.  Beginning in 1998 as the Birmingham Area Tennis Association, the organization provides tennis and academic opportunities to youth with an eye on improving health and offering a productive activity for children when they are not in school. Additionally, tennis teaches discipline, social skills, improves self-esteem, and promotes physical fitness.

LETT reaches 10,000 children each year with after-school, summer camp, and academic programs.  Children who are interested are given access to all the equipment necessary to play. The organization gears itself to take on beginners and see them through to USTA Youth Team Tennis competitions.

Patrice Millet: a Life Rededicated to the Service of Haiti's Children

Patrice Millet survived life-threatening bone cancer and decided to do something different with his life.  The successful businessman sold his construction company to dedicate his life to the service of Haiti's children.  He founded the Foundation Notre-Dame du Perpétuel Secours (FONDAPS).

Millet's nonprofit organization uses sports to educate kids on fair play, teamwork, respect, love, and how to become a responsible, contributing citizen.  Poverty is pervasive in Haiti; so, FONDAPS offers a food program that addresses health and nutrition.  School tuition is also paid for youth whose parents cannot afford the fees. Besides offering sports, nutrition, and opportunities for education, FONDAPS makes regular donations to Haiti's orphanages and youth soccer clubs.

Millet has been nominated as a top 2011 CNN Hero.

GOALS Haiti...Scoring for Humanity

“GOALS doesn’t do charity. Our work is driven forward by the community’s needs and the community’s own contributions. This is aid dependency in reverse: in Destra, GOALS relies on the community to organize, support, complete, and then maintain projects. [GOALS’ work] is showing that we can improve the way people and organizations tackle development work, from soccer and gardening to toilets and houses.”– Kona Shen, GOALS Founder & Director

GOALS or the Global Outreach And Love Of Soccer is a non-profit uses soccer to empower and change the lives of children by improving their quality of life, the environment and developing local leadership.  23 year old Shen founded the organization which "works in areas of Haiti in need of immediate and long-term community and environmental development action."

Programs include summer camps, after-school events, and neighborhood teams, but the efforts extend beyond the game with a focus on Education & Leadership, Community Development, Environmental Rehabilitation, and Health.

Find out how you can help by visiting the GOALS donation page.

Right to Play: Empowering Kids in Poverty and War Torn Regions

Right To Play evolved from an official Olympian show of support for children in war-torn nations and distressed regions of the world.  Since the 90s, the organization has focused its goals on the transformative power of sport and play in the lives of youth affected by war, poverty, and disease.  Nurturing essential skills and development in children empowers the upcoming generation to change their own communities, their world.  Right To Play fosters a safe place for kids to learn and imbues them with the hope that they can make a better world and realize the futures they deserve.

Gridiron Heroes: Life After Spinal Cord Injuries

Life after catastrophic injuries can seem insurmountable for the young athletes who survive such trauma.  One in every 100,000 high school football players faces a serious spinal cord injury each year. Gridiron Heroes Spinal Cord Injury Foundation aims to help students face the challenges that come whether it's physically, emotionally, mentally, or financially.

Gridiron Heroes founders have a very personal story that led to the creation of this 501 (C) 3 Non-Profit.  They provide immediate and long term support to individuals sustaining a catastrophic spinal cord injury associated with high school football.  The organization, although based in Texas, has made efforts to expand their support around the U.S.

(Source).