The mission of Kids In Sports LA (KIS) is to create community based sports programs for youth in underserved areas of Los Angeles County.
The LA84 Foundation conceived the original Sports Club concept in 1989, and KIS was established as a non-profit organization with seed money from the Foundation in 1994. Kids In Sports currently operates 13 clubs that deliver sports activities in baseball, T-ball, basketball, soccer, softball, swimming and volleyball and serves more than 8,000 youth annually. Boys and girls, ages 5 to 17, participate in year-round sports programs at parks and schools. Regularly scheduled practices and competitions are conducted in the evenings and on weekends during the consecutive sports seasons.
In its years of dedicated community service, Kids In Sports is proud to have served over 130,000 Los Angeles County youth. Each Sports Club is a partnership between the members of the community, parks, schools and Kids In Sports. Parents and other interested neighborhood residents are recruited to volunteer their time as coaches and as Sports Club advisory committee members. Organizations such as city and county departments of recreation and parks and area schools provide meeting rooms and sports facilities. KIS manages all aspects of each sports club, supplies the necessary equipment and uniforms, pays for certified officials and provides guidance, technical assistance and training to volunteers.
Although the focus is on serving youth, the kids who take part each season are not the only ones who benefit from Kids In Sports. Entire families who participate along with their children win as well. Family members attend preseason orientation meetings to learn about the program and how to prepare their kids to participate. Parents attend their kids’ practices and games, meet their friends and socialize with other parents, school and park personnel which ultimately allows them to become more involved in their child’s development. Parents who volunteer as KIS advisory committee members receive training in transferable skills like finance, community outreach, program promotion, volunteer recruitment and season planning. Parents who volunteer as KIS team coaches receive positive coaching training and assistance from KIS, the LA84 Foundation and other resources. By empowering parents, school and park administrators and community business leaders, Kids In Sports continues to build communities, one team at a time.
KIS President, Anita Defrantz; Board Member, Lori Okimura; Executive Director, Elva Sandoval; Board Member, Pam Rotshtein.
President, Anita DeFrantz President, LA84 Foundation
John M. Argue Senior Managing Director, VerityPoint
William C. Choi *Board Secretary Rodriguez, Horii, Choi & Cafferata, LLP
Conway Collis Daughters of Charity Health System
Ann Meyers Drysdale Phoenix Mercury General Manager & Phoenix Suns Vice President
Debra Kay Duncan Executive Director, Dan Murphy Foundation
Penelope Foley Managing Director TCW Worldwide Opportunities
Conrad R. Freund *Board Treasurer Chief Operating Officer, LA84 Foundation
Rafer Johnson *Past Board Chair Founding Member, California Special Olympics
Parker P. Jenkins Program Manager, USC TRIO Programs
Rob Mancini Vice President- Investments, Smith Barney
Jim Martin Chief Investment Officer, M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust
Brian Matthews Managing Principal, Payden & Rygel
Laura Mickelson Vice President, Production & Operations FOX Sports
Kim Ng Vice President for Baseball Operations, Major League Baseball
Lori E. Okimura President/Chief Executive Officer Creative Sports Strategies
Pam Rotshtein New York Palace
Frank M. Sanchez Owner/Opoerator, McDonald's
Creative Sports Strategies is proud to support the Friends of Hawaii Charities, an organization that has raised more than $1.2 million for hundreds of Hawaii-based non profit associations. Each year, the Friends of Hawaii Charities successfully promotes the PGA's Sony Open in Hawaii at the beautiful, oceanside Waialae Country Club, organized by more than 1,700 volunteers and sponsors.
