PREVIOUS PROJECTS
Summer Basketball Camps for Middle School Students
HoopsHelps partners with By The Hand Club and Moving Everest Charter School to provide summer recreational opportunities for middle school children in the Austin neighborhood to learn to play basketball. Led by David Gieser, and assisted by the Fenwick High School boys varsity basketball team, the basketball clinics teach teamwork and fundamental skills, amidst a wholesome atmosphere of fun, prizes, and laughter. Children and high school students alike have a blast together. Check out our photos and video to see the kids in action!
Most projects involve raising awareness and funds for those in under-resourced communities of Chicago, while assisting those who require basic necessities and educational resources. Several partner organizations have been identified that meet these needs in tangible and specific ways.
HoopsHelps challenged supporters to donate 100 high quality children's books to Outreach Community Center to supply under-resourced grade school kids with individual books to assist their academic progress. You surpassed our wildest dreams, raising over 300 books for the wonderful children at Outreach. Thank you to all HoopsHelps supporters for your contributions!
South/West Side of Chicago
By The Hand is an after-school program that guides kids and walks with them from kindergarten through college, loving and nurturing them—mind, body, and soul. The program's vision is to help children who live in under-resourced neighborhoods have abundant life. Due to economic challenges resulting in part from COVID-19, families in these communities need groceries and basic necessities in addition to educational resources.
Englewood
Englewood is an under-resourced community where many families are struggling to meet basic needs, including food and educational resources as parents assist their children elearning at home. Englewood Family Outreach is doing a great work in this community, and HoopsHelps wants to support them as the organization serves these vulnerable families. David was planning to serve on a team in Englewood in the summer of 2020, but due to COVID-19, his service trip was canceled.
Dribbling for Dollars Challenge
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, HoopsHelps sponsored a Dribbling for Dollars Challenge to encourage kids toward healthy physical activity while raising others' awareness of the needs in vulnerable communities and simultaneously providing a means for them to respond with action. Participants were challenged to emulate a series of basketball dribbling drills illustrated by David in a video and asked to submit videos of themselves as they followed David's example. Through its sponsors, HoopsHelps donated over $2000 to Englewood Family Outreach for all participants who accepted the dribbling challenge. Young people from many diverse backgrounds joined in the fun, understanding that anyone can make a difference, even while unable to go into needy communities due to shelter-at-home restrictions from COVID-19. See David's template and a winner's video shown below! Thanks to everyone who participated in this fantastic challenge!!
David
Winner!
