MULTI-FUNCTIONAL SPORTS SPACE SUPPORTED BY ESPN OPENS IN FLINT, MICHIGAN

October 10, 2022

RETURN TO PLAY FUND SITE IS HELPING YOUNG PEOPLE OF COLOR GET MOVING AGAIN

In direct response to the pandemic’s disproportionate effects on Black and Brown communities, ESPN supported the refurbishment of a space at Dewey Park in Flint, Michigan to help communities of color return to play. The site offically opened October 10, 2022. 

40% of families with children live below the poverty level in the region. The new hybrid, multifunctional pitch will provide North Flint youth with access to sports and help restore a neighborhood that has suffered from urban decay.  "In this community, we have a lot of children being raised in underprivileged families. This is a park where they can come and be free, be kids, and enjoy themselves", said Quincy Murphy, 3rd Ward City Councilman, City of Flint.

The space will be utilized by the Sylvester Broome Empowerment Village (SBEV), who will work with other local organizations to deliver youth-focused sports educational programs. And through a partnership with RISE, a national nonprofit which educates and empowers the sports community to eliminate racial discrimination, champion social justice and improve race relations, SBEV will deliver its multi-week leadership program for children and coaches at the Dewey Park site beginning in December.

The build is part of the Return to Play Fund, which was founded by Beyond Sport and ESPN to use sport to center health, wellbeing and systemic solutions to the heart of community recovery across the United States. Through the fund, leading experts are helping ensure that Black and Brown youth are not further disadvantaged during and coming out of the national rebuilding process.

love.fútbol, a global non-profit which engages communities to create, sustain and maximize the potential of their own sports space projects, led the transformation of the space. Drew Chafetz, Co-Founder and CEO, added, “We’ve built safe sports spaces on four continents with ESPN, and are honored by the opportunity to bring it to Flint. I believe that this sports space can truly represent the inherent strength of the community, the leadership that people show and really be a way to create a unified vision for the future.”