FREEDOM Youth Sports - impact for now and forever

UPDATE: In order to better accommodate those interested in partnering with us while we await 501(c)(3) status for FREEDOM, we are accepting contributions through Athletes in Action. We are keeping the GoFundMe page live to share our mission while we construct our web page. Thank you for your interest and support!

To contribute through a tax-exempt organization, please visit give.cru.org/1100936

Four years ago Christin and I started Athletes in Action Flag Football in East Amwell, NJ. The stated purpose of the league is to provide the youth of the tri-county (Hunterdon, Mercer, Somerset) area with a low-cost opportunity to learn football skills in a fun and safe environment. In addition to on-field skills, we include a significant focus on faith (Christian) and character development. All children ages 5-14 are welcome, regardless of faith background. Playing time and participation in football activities are not linked to participation in any faith-based activities, but we do encourage participation in service/outreach activities such as collecting food and assembling baskets at Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter for local families in need. In addition, participants have the opportunity to meet with guest speakers from local professional, college and high school sports teams. 

What started out in year one with twenty-one participants has grown to include nearly seventy players, as well as a number of local teens helping to coach and encourage. The response and impact during the first four years is overwhelming. Some examples of feedback received include:

"My experience with flag football was amazing. Not only did it make my athletic game better, but it also taught me a lot of life lessons. At the end of every lesson and practice we always talked about a specific part of the Bible that [Coach Thompson] handpicked to represent everything we had worked on. I personally got so much out of this program and it has helped me with all things, not only my athletic career. After my two years with this I look at the world very differently." - Daniel Kellogg, age 14

"We came into Chris's flag football program in the 2nd year of its formation. From the beginning, the energy was present and it was clear that kids and parents all wanted to be here and make the program successful and be part of "it"! Our son looks forward to every "EARLY" Saturday morning to be part of the team, to meet new kids and hang with his friends, and to learn the ins and outs of football. He takes to heart the message that Chris talks about in the beginning of the day and applies it where he can.  All of the volunteers are encouraging and fun and knowledgeable and the kids and parents all thrive in the atmosphere."

-Gary and Sharyn Stellitano, parents

"What Chris invests in our children’s lives is unique and special. His passion for spending time teaching them about life through sport has been significant for my son. He is having a blast while learning about being a young man of character. I want my son around other men who can assist in his character development.  By being with Chris and his team at AIA, he is learning humility, integrity, fairness and honor."

-Jamie Damm, parent

"It is my sincere pleasure to take a moment to speak about Chris Thompson and his vision for Christian Youth Athletics. I have had the opportunity to have coached with him in many different sports for many different age groups in many leagues. Chris’s passion truly came through with his own Christian Flag Football league. He masterly choreographed the teachings of the Bible with topics such as perseverance, integrity, and sportsmanship just for a few. I feel the values that he shared are vitally important for our boys and girls to have. My own children attended, learned and enjoyed the experience immensely. The lessons that Chris shared were heard by all those in attendance and practiced on and off the field. He built their minds, body’s and souls."

-Chris Kellogg, parent

Over the past year I felt a growing desire and call to have a greater impact on the youth in our community, as well as neighboring communities. Months of contemplation led me to take a leap of faith in February 2019 when I stepped away from my role leading the accounting and finance department of a multi-million dollar group of companies to pursue this mission. With the decision to step out of the proverbial boat, FREEDOM Youth Sports was born.

FREEDOM - Fun, Recreation, Education and Eternity Define Our Mission - will continue to operate in partnership with Athletes in Action, with a heavy focus on youth sports programs and connecting participants with high-level athletes that desire to share their faith and encourage character on and off the field. However, the vision for this ministry has grown over the past several months to expand our impact and change more lives.

Building on the success of the Athletes in Action Flag Football program and leveraging my finance and operations experience in the fitness, construction, sports, education and venture capital industries and Christin's experience in education and retail, we are working to build an organization focused on impacting local communities through sport and education.

The driving force behind the mission is our Christian faith. We see a growing opportunity, using sports, to reach and to love the people in our community and provide resources and training that prepares them for life and eternity.

Our vision initially went beyond just overseeing a sports league to include developing a facility that not only provides space to run sports team programs, but serves the larger community as well. Utilizing key aspects of successful health and wellness organizations, the facility will include:

-a small health/fitness center;

-a multi-purpose training area for team training and practice;

-group exercise rooms (yoga, spin bikes, etc.); and

-indoor batting cages and other sports specific amenities.

Setting this facility apart from other health and fitness models will be the inclusion of:

-rooms dedicated to education;

-meeting rooms for youth groups and Bible studies;

-a food pantry; and

-a community garden (to provide food pantry recipients with fresh produce).

During school-time hours, we will partner with homeschooling and special needs groups to provide low-cost physical wellness programs.

The final piece of our facility will be an outdoor, multi-purpose turf field for in-house programming and as an additional source of support funds through servicing outside athletic organizations.

FREEDOM Fitness: The youth sports portion of the organization will remain low cost and focus on integrating faith and character during practices and competition.  The majority of the expenses of FREEDOM Fitness will be covered by program fees and donors. Additionally, we’ll offer affordable, safe, fun and educational summer camps.

FREEDOM Learning: The educational portion of the organization will seek to provide needed resources to members of the community. These include:

-after-school tutoring;

-summer tutoring;

-PSAT and SAT prep;

-seminars on navigating the college application and financial aid process; and

-mentorship programs (pairing business owners, executives and former athletes with teens and college students)

FREEDOM Service: The service portion of the organization will partner with local churches to provide meals to families in need. Funds for the food pantry will be sourced from donors and income from facility programming. Packaging and distributing the food will be handled through service-minded sports league participants.

While we will seek funding for the acquisition of land and the development of a facility through other avenues, this campaign is to help to offset the start-up costs of this ministry, such as insurance, professional fees for web design, marketing and legal counsel; costs related to acquiring materials and supplies for additional sports; and, a monthly stipend for Christin and me to assist with living expenses as we devote a significant amount of time to developing this organization.

Unfortunately, Covid had a significant negative impact on our ability to proceed with plans for a facility. We are adapting our approach to partner with organizations that already have facilities and share a passion for our mission.

We are seeking your partnership in this mission in three key ways:

1) Prayer 

2) Financial support

3) Spread the word

Thank you for joining us to have an impact now and forever. If you have questions about our mission or want more information, please let us know. We are excited to share our passion for this incredible project.

Humbly and gratefully,

Chris and Christin Thompson

DISCLOSURE: 

FREEDOM Youth Sports is an New Jersey nonprofit corporation in the process of applying for 501(c)(3) status. Contributions made prior to approval may become tax-deductible retroactively upon recognition by the IRS as a tax-exempt organization.