Philanthropy - Chicago, Illinois, United States
We were lucky. We were fortunate to be born into families with the means to pay for us to play the sports that we loved.Over the years, as coaches and athletes, we have seen the effects that sports can have on kids. As athletes compete, they develop and acquire skills that, over time, they can carry into other aspects of their lives. Skills such as: grit, learning to work well on a team, self-confidence and dealing with adversity. Research shows that students who participate in sports get better grades, graduate at higher rates and have more confidence. These athletes go on to get better jobs with better pay later in life. The benefits of middle school and high school sports last a lifetime: 90% of female CEOs were athletes.For the overwhelming majority of students, participation in competitive athletics ends after high school. Most athletes won't compete in college but our goal, first and foremost, is to give all athletes equal opportunity to get there. And to get the most out of their middle school or high school teams.Our respective teams and coaches have helped shaped the people we've become and we want to use that, in turn, to shape the lives of middle school and high school athletes. This is our passion. This is how we got here, this is why we're here. This is the 38 Foundation.