Two Florida youths collect donations to improve youth sports worldwide
Matthew Birnbaum, 13, and Jared March, 12, are youngsters who know firsthand the value of active sports participation. Their appreciation for sports is so great that it inspired these roller hockey and tennis enthusiasts to contribute to the Global Gear Drive (GGD).
Matthew and Jared managed to collect used sporting equipment that more than 40 underprivileged children will get to enjoy.
They were also able to raise more than $1,300 in cash donations from their friends and parents for the Sammy Wilkinson Memorial World Fund (SWMWF) – a fundraising initiative of the National Alliance For Youth Sport (NAYS).
“They are both huge sports fans, so they decided they wanted to collect sports equipment,” said Sharon Birnbaum, Matthew’s mother. “The problem was that they had no idea where to send all the stuff. So we went online and that’s how we found the Global Gear Drive.”
Both boys chose to raise the money and equipment as a part of their Hebrew School’s mitzvah (good deed) project.
Boys or girls seeking bar or bat-mitzvah – a Jewish rite of passage – are required by many Jewish temples to perform some sort of philanthropic or charitable act, such as Matthew and Jared’s.
Because the boys are such passionate athletes, they wanted to use this assignment as a way to share the exciting experience of sports participation – and did so with the GGD and the SWMWF.
Unfortunately, many children throughout the world do not have the advantage of participating in sports, as many communities lack proper facilities, equipment or organized league structures.
Improving those conditions is the exact mission of the International Alliance For Youth Sports (IAYS), an arm of NAYS.
Thanks to youth like Matthew and Jared, children all over the world will receive the necessary equipment to participate in sports. Boxes are already en route to several African countries. | 
