Sport Initiative Update (Click to download PDF)

by Moises Guillen, W/NP Sports Coordinator, Managua, Nicaragua

Baseball

Prior to working with sports as a model for youth leadership and community development, the Wisconsin Nicaragua Partners chapter (W/NP) worked throughout Wisconsin and Nicaragua in various programs focusing mainly on supporting adults. Including sports programs in W/NP’s repertoire has allowed youth to discover a unique outlet for developing leadership skills, and has allowed our organization to collaborate with other programs and people with similar interests.

When approached by POA with the opportunity for our chapter to participate in the Baseball Program, it was met with some question because we had minimal youth sports programs in existence. Recently the topic was brought up, “How does your chapter decide which projects to pursue?” The Baseball Program proved to be a classic example of knowing when to move forward when the vital components are present: funding, interested professionals/volunteers willing to invest time and effort, and of course a reciprocal need & desire with the partnering chapter.

When identifying participants for the initial Baseball program, our committee knew we wanted to bring individuals who would support boy’s baseball and girl’s softball in their community. The participants selected for the Baseball Program exchange observed boys and girls programs at the youth, adult, minor league, and major league levels. Incorporating youth sports into their community was fairly new for some of those in Nicaragua for various reasons, mainly economic, but one participant in particular utilized the learning opportunity to the ultimate extreme and has turned her community, once lacking any girls softball, into a strong, supportive, softball town. This is one of many examples of how the W/NP Sports Initiatives program was able to bring about important changes in communities for youth and adults.

WNP has had a unique collaboration between multiple programs, including the Youth Ambassador Program, the Baseball Sports initiatives and the internal organizational growth and development component of our chapter. Several of our Youth Ambassadors have coordinated and provided home-stays, translation at exchange workshops, organization of teams, distribution of equipment, and much more. Two of our most valuable volunteers who recently engineered the Sherin Rose Memorial Building renovation project, were the direct result of involvement in the Baseball Exchange workshops. In addition, several other individuals from the Nicaraguan Baseball workshops now volunteer their time to other W/NP projects in Nicaragua. Attending the Baseball workshops provided these individuals with their first taste of WNP, and now they have provided many hours of volunteer labor toward other projects as well.

Through donations from our members, old and new, we have secured a position online (www.globalgiving.com) where anyone around the world can learn about our programs and support them financially. We have already had a number of youth travel to Wisconsin to educate high school age students about the organization and it’s opportunities for both cultures. Especially appealing to this age group, has been the realization they share a love and respect for sports with their counterparts in Nicaragua. Although, a geographical distance is between them, the sports appeal has become their common denominator. Through programs of this kind, we will continue to support cultural exchanges for coaches and seek additional opportunities for girls to participate in sports.

Without a doubt, the initial POA Baseball program was the catalyst for a flurry of continuous youth sports activity that is continuously improving the infrastructure of youth sports like we never could have imagined. Thank you for this opportunity that is changing not only individuals, but whole communities.

Contact W/NP if you are interested in doing a "sports equipment" drive in your school or community - or if you have sports equipment you would like to see go to Nicaragua. Several sports related projects are in the works, one of them pictured below: Jordan (UWSP Baseball Team) met up with Pedro in Nicaragua and noticed his "Stevens Point" hat - imagine that! Now Jordan has joined W/NP efforts and will be organizing a sports drive at UWSP. Welcome Jordan!