Posts Tagged ‘facility’
Why a Facility? More Like “Who”
You’ve met Monica and Mikhel. Soon you’ll get to know Kaila, Mikekal and Coach Mike Boyd.
In our six-part year-end video series, you are meeting some of the people behind our “why.” For us, the answer to why we need a facility is so clear once you know for whom we are building it.
Each of the Champions we are highlighting are unique, but they share similar ambitions. These are special people and they deserve the same opportunities their suburban counterparts enjoy. They want to put in the work, they want to build themselves, on and off the mat. So we are providing them a place where their ambitions will know no limits. It’s happening in late January – early February.
As an organization, we strive to embody the spirit of the budding Life Champions mentioned above. They are the reason we are thriving despite very unique circumstances. Their passion and drive fuels everything we do. With our kids at the forefront, our team set a vision to build a world class youth development center. A place where anyone with a good attitude and an appetite for work, despite social, economic, or geographic circumstances, can call home – THE FIRST EVER BTS STAND ALONE WRESTLING FACILITY.
We have not let Covid slow us down. Our focus is not on the pandemic but our reaction to the pandemic. Cathy Yen stepped up. Our board stepped up. Our Capital Campaign committee stepped up. Our coaches stepped up. Our student-athletes fought like only wrestlers can. And here we are, positioned to come out of this unprecedented time with a world class facility run by master leaders, mentors and coaches (Yes, we hired three incredible people during a world-wide crisis!).
The end and aftermath of the pandemic will be extremely difficult in Chicago. Particularly for many of BTS families. We will continue to work with our kids in mind. We will focus on the controllables. We embrace our community and feed from their unbreakable spirits.
BTS Chicago is guided by our core values; Accountability, Gratitude, Grit, Integrity, and Excellence. One of these stands out now more than the others – Gratitude. I am so grateful for our BTS Family, the wrestling community, and all those who have rallied to support our mission. We hope you will continue to bet on our kids, our community, our team. Thank you!!!!
Help us keep this going. Your contribution to Beat the Streets Chicago funds not only this critical facility but the life-changing programs we can offer there. Give at btschicago.org/donate
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Beyond Wrestling: Programming for Life Champions
Chicago youth look to Beat the Streets Chicago for more than “just” wrestling. Their trust in our organization positions us to create long-lasting positive impact beyond winning wrestling matches today. We are developing tomorrow’s champions and leaders in both wrestling and life.
As Director of Wrestling and Enrichment, I am working with my team now to put in place new facility-based programming that will begin as soon as our new training center is open (target: mid-first quarter 2021). We will provide programs that offer the real life experiences our student athletes need to excel in life. That demands a curriculum with much more than wrestling and physical workouts. Enrichment is just as important.
All of our programs will continue to reiterate the core values: accountability, gratitude, grit, integrity, and excellence. By placing a daily emphasis on these skills through programming – whether they be physical literacy classes, conditioning workouts, enrichment programs, tutoring sessions or mentoring relationships – our student athletes will be positioned to become the future leaders of tomorrow in our community, our city and our nation.
Our programs will bring together some of the most successful and influential people in the community in industries such as education, finance, wellness and athletics to name a few, to share real life experiences and to empower our student athletes to become the next success stories from Chicago’s neighborhoods.
The building blocks are in place: both literally, as we build out the new facility at 59th and Archer, and figuratively, as we brainstorm the new curriculum building off what we’ve offered these past two years and what has resonated during the pandemic.
Coming this February, we will have a mix of wrestling and enrichment programs structured to adhere to social-distance protocols and the needs of our community. We’ll be announcing the full line-up and registration process very soon.
Our staff, coaches and volunteer tutors and mentors are committed to the success of every student athlete within our BTS Chicago community. As our organization grows, our programs will continue to evolve and meet the needs of the communities that we serve. We encourage our kids to have input into program design, and let us know what they believe is important to their future, thus ensuring they are fully invested and bought-in to what we offer.
This is an exciting time to be a part of Beat the Streets Chicago. We are grateful for the opportunity to serve the youth of Chicago and are building them the world-class organization, world-class facility and world-class curriculum that they need to become Life Champions.
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