Dear Bay Area Rapid Transit Police Officers Association Members,

We know you are asked to make donations throughout the year to many worthwhile organizations and causes, but I would like to respectfully take a moment of your time and introduce to you a brand-new soccer club, the (2016U) "Real Richmond Roots Football Club." Established in February of 2024, our boys were all born within the year of 2016 and are all (8) years old or younger living within and around the City of Richmond.

The majority of our (15) kids were formerly members of the "Richmond Quakes Soccer Club" based out of Richmond, CA. Unfortunately, due to an internal complication within the prior club, our team completely disassociated, and our new club has started at the ground floor.

Recently taking 1st place in last years Winter Richmond Futsal League "Indoor Soccer" and currently (6 and 0) within the "Alameda Berkeley Soccer Club" (ABSC) Fall Recreational League, the Real Roots Football Club brings training and recreational/competitive soccer back to their hometown where they can all continue to play on the same team and train together once again! We believe the professional coaches and training this organization provides will, in time, develop our young athletes into exceptional middle school and high school soccer players. Our goal is not only to teach kids to play soccer but to once again excel as a unit before they enter their competitive school teams. The Real Richmond Roots will continue to build self-esteem, self-confidence, character, and sportsmanship at the most basic levels, yet providing the players an opportunity to compete in very competitive leagues throughout the year.

The Real Richmond Roots Soccer Club is guided by two dedicated coaches, a team manager, and parent volunteers. Currently, our only sources of revenue are the fees paid by parents of the kids all living within the low-income community, fundraising where the parents volunteer their time, and hopefully the generous businesses who will support the new team.

The fees the parents are paying cover individual player/seasonal (spring, summer, fall, winter) league registration fees, training, and tournament fees, but additional funds are needed to cover the ever-increasing costs of the seasonal leagues, equipment, and uniforms.

We are reaching out to you today in hopes of assisting our team with a one-time donation to assist us with paying for new uniforms and equipment, as we just paid our team's upcoming winter registration fee and an upcoming winter tournament fee. Our team's current uniforms are weathered, worn, beginning to stretch, and in some of the kids' cases, beginning to tear. These uniforms were purchased over a year ago while still playing for the previous team several seasons ago where the new "Richmond Roots" team logo needed to be vinyl'd over. Unfortunately, the vinyl's logo, numbers, and names are peeling off, and with the old previous team logos showing through, we now must continuously super glue or place duct tape over to hide.

We are doing everything we can to cover our expenses with fundraising to keep player fees as low as possible; however, as with any new organization, we face the added challenges of start-up costs. In order to continue to grow our program, we are asking the businesses within our community for help if possible. We want our boys to continue playing together as they have within their hometown of Richmond with pride.

We understand that for many, money is tight, but we can assure you that every cent donated will go to the new uniforms, equipment, and the overall progression of the club. We are thanking you in advance for any donation you select, and if you have any questions about the Real Richmond Roots Football Club, please do not hesitate to call, text, or email.

Respectfully yours,