Youth Sports Initiative is a club for not only extracurricular purposes or volunteer hours, but also a club with the means to make a difference. This student-led initiative aims to provide sporting opportunities for all children, especially those in underprivileged communities who may not have access to facilities or resources.
Athletics and sports are a huge part of the majority of kids’ lives, especially here in Cary. However, not every kid has the opportunity to participate in or enjoy the sports they love, whether the reason is the expense it comes with, access to coaching, etc. With Youth Sports Initiative, they aim to make the dreams of those kids a reality.
Founded by Class of 2026 students James Torbey, Rishi Saha, and Aarin Bharadwaj, this club is perfect for students who want to get into making a difference through the sports they love to play, watch, or simply enjoy.
Youth Sports Initiative has a various amount of things they do to give back to the community through sports. They have multiple equipment drives every month, they hold events for coaching children in different sports, and they have events to raise money and raise awareness for student athletes with special needs.
One of their more notable accomplishments is the partnership with the Miracle League of the Triangle, which aims to “create positive life experiences for children and adults with special needs and for their families through baseball.” They volunteered and set up a baseball event to raise awareness for kids with special needs.
Another notable accomplishment was their basketball clinic, where they were given the opportunity to give kids an opportunity to learn, grow, and have fun on the basketball court. They collaborated with The Salvation Army of Wake County and hosted an event where they taught kids the basics of basketball, went through various drills, and allowed them to have an overall good time playing basketball.
Overall, YSI is only just getting started, and they plan to host even more events and drives in the future. “We definitely want to do more equipment drives. Getting more equipment is always a good thing because that just gives more people the chance to play,” said Green Level Junior and YSI club member Nikhil Peddibhotla, “Similarly to what we did with the Miracle League, we want to set up more clinics or anything that gives kids more experience.”
The Youth Sports Initiative meets in Mr. Colosi’s room, room 0145, every Friday. If you want a chance to make a difference through sports, sign up for their connectivity sessions in Alltimely.
