In 2017, a few friends and I were managing a memorial scholarship for a best friend. That year, no graduating seniors met the criteria. Rather than skip a year, we looked for another way to give back. After some digging, we connected with a local youth hockey player who couldn't afford his team dues and stepped in to cover them in full. In this process, I uncovered a glaring gap: there was no clear bridge connecting local youth athletes in financial need with willing donors.
For years, that experience stayed with me. Throughout my network of coaches across various sports, the financial burden of youth sports was a constant, frustrating theme. At the end of 2024, I finally voiced an idea to change that. A close friend told me simply, "Just start," and put a daily reminder on my calendar to keep me accountable. By 2025, the groundwork was laid.
Youth sports shaped who I am. I was fortunate enough never to be denied the chance to play, and the core group of friends I hold close to this day—the people I still compete with into adulthood—came from those early teams. Sports provide an unmatched foundation for handling adversity, learning from losses, celebrating growth, and cultivating teamwork. It's where kids learn to navigate the highs and lows of life, and no child should ever have to sit on the sidelines because of a price tag.
Today, we are an established 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to eliminating financial barriers for young athletes across New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine. Because we are 100% volunteer-run, our promise is simple: every single dollar raised through our fundraising goes directly to the kids and families who need it most.
-Russell