After School Programs Enrich Lives

       I recently read an article about Derrick Rose and how he contributes to his community. This professional NBA athlete donated $1 million to After School Matters. After School Matters is a Chicago-based non-profit organization that provides support to 15,000 Chicago teens, in the form of programs held outside of school hours. The teen population at After School Matters is made up of inner city kids whose families live at or below poverty level. Derrick Rose, an NBA MVP and three-time All-Star, was quoted during his interview on espn.com saying "To have a strong community of people who believe in your potential can make all the difference in the world. So many people have invested in me and I want to do the same for Chicago's teens."

        The money Derrick Rose donated will be used to give these teens more recourse to help prepare them for college, jobs, and whatever else life brings them. Benefiting from having a program to help with networking, as well as, preparation for the real world will be very helpful for this group of kids coming out of the inner city.

         After School Matters was founded over two decades ago by Chicago’s former First Lady, Maggie Daley. Since her death in 2012, “My message to our kids is simple – you matter, you deserve every opportunity in life, and you can and should dream big because dreams can come true,” said Rose.

           The Chicago Bulls have contributed to After School Matters for years now. Bulls’ Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf sits on the organization’s Advisory Board, and Bulls’ President and Chief Operating Officer Michael Reinsdorf sits on the Board of Directors.


            This article really hit home for me. I am from north Minneapolis, which is the inner city of Minnesota. During my elementary years all the way up through middle school, I participated in a program like this called A.C.E.S., which stands for Athletes Committed to Educating Students. This was an after-school program that primarily focused on providing tutoring service and mentoring to area children. While in the program, we went on field trips, such as going to see a Twins baseball game, received help on our homework and studies, and participated in many team-building activities to help us learn life skills and lessons. Being a part of such an organization that is still popular and is continually expanding to new middle and high schools was beneficial to me. It has made me the person I am today. If it weren’t for A.C.E.S., who knows where I would have been after school let out or what I have been doing to kill time until basketball practice or going home. I might have easily joined a gang or had been doing other things that my peers and older kids were doing to try and fit in.


            Throughout the years, I have kept in close contact with the former Head of Operations at A.C.E.S, Chad Caruthers. Chad became the Head of Operations during my last year in the program(8^th grade) and has since moved on to pursue a different career at St. Thomas University in Minnesota. Chad and I became very close and we still text, email, and get together to catch up when I am home for a break. He is also a huge fan and has followed me throughout my basketball career.

For more information about A.C.E.S., please visit their website at http://www.aces4kids.org
  
In addition to having after school programs along with mentoring will ensure academic success and help build life and social skills. For a new volunteering opportunity read Building a Foundation of Academic Success.