The Usain Bolt Foundation will again join an elite list of headline sponsors who will be supporting the 13th staging of the CVSS Summer Games in Kingston this July.
This makes the fourth year in a row that the Usain Bolt Foundation has made a financial contribution to the Games, and the second year in the running it has made a $1 million gift.
The Foundation is happy to support the event again and hopes that the contribution will translate into greater exposure for the talents of the inner-city children which the Games targets.
Since its inception in 2010, the Foundation has been supporting activities and institutions that help children and youth realise their dreams and bringing relief to the most vulnerable members of the Jamaican society. It has stayed true to its mission of creating opportunities through education and cultural development for a positive change.
Deep Track prints over 10 years
The Foundation has left deep social track prints of good over its 10 year lifetime, much of which can be traced to Trelawny, the hometown of its benefactor, Usain Bolt.
The first project the Foundation funded was in 2010 when it renovated a dilapidated health centre in Sherwood Content at a cost of $4 million. Since then, the Foundation’s Good Neighbour bucket list has expanded to include
- Annual Christmas treats for children of Sherwood Content
- The construction of a state-of-the-art dining room facility at his alma mater, William Knibb Memorial High School in 2012
- The handing over of a multipurpose court to the Sherwood Content community in Trelawny in collaboration with the Digicel Foundation in 2013
- Giving back to his high school’s sports programme with a cash donation of $1.3 million plus sporting equipment and supplies in September 2015.
Other communities, parishes and even countries have been touched by the Foundation’s benevolence and goodwill as well. In 2014, as part of its thrust to positively impact the lives of children, especially those with special needs, the Foundation partnered with the Mustard Seed Community to impact 35 orphans in its orphanage in Adelphi, St. James.
In 2016, when Hurricane Matthew ravaged Haiti, the Foundation partnered with well-known charity, Food for the Poor to assist hurricane victims in that country.
Bolt was also among the first to respond in 2018 with a J$1 Million donation when fire gutted the Walkers Place of Safety, a home for young wards of the state.
In March this year, the retired sprinting icon helped make it possible for 73 special athletes along with their coaches and other officials from Special Olympics Jamaica to compete at the 2019 World Games in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates. The $1M commitment brought smiles and happy faces on children, especially those who are disadvantaged, by daring them to dream and then bringing their dreams to reality.
The CVSS Connection
In 2016, the Council of Voluntary Social Services (CVSS) approached the Foundation requesting support for an ambitious aspiration: to expose the hidden athletic talents of its youth sector in a one-day event that would level the playing field for youths from all across Jamaica.
The young contenders for these Games would represent a diverse and inclusive demographic group, in which those from low-income and disabled communities would enjoy the same opportunities to show their potential and reap the same benefits.
The preparation and participation in the CVSS Summer Games would provide for the participants and caregivers an outlet for creativity, team-building and camaraderie with planned benefits ranging from unearthing the talents of at-risk youth to building healthy relationships amongst opposing communities.
The Summer Games would provide an opportunity for children and youth to compete in a harmonious and non-threatening environment.
So, on the first Saturday in July, participants would convene on one playfield, multicoloured in competitive diversity, but connected by one binding passion: a love for sport. The Usain Bolt Foundation loved the proposal and agreed to be a part of the project which aligns with its mandate.
That was three years ago.
The Dream. . . the Possibilities
At the 13th staging of the CVSS Summer Games this year, over 1500 youths will be given a taste of Olympic-like glory when the Games kick off at the UWI Mona Bowl in Kingston on Saturday, July 6, 2019
The Usain Bolt’s Foundation’s $1 million gift will make it possible for children from places like Sunbeam Children’s Home in Old Harbour to be bussed to the Mona Bowl for a rare day out and an even rarer chance of being spotted for their prowess.
The gift could pivot another Barrington Mitchell ( 2017 Summer Games Success Story) into the line of sight of another talent-hungry Olympics scout. Barrington will be a contender at the 2019 Racers Grand Prix.
Through the lens of sponsors who have opted to sign up to causes like these, young people can peer into a better version of their future; can be reminded of their common humanity and be exhilarated by the possibilities of what can be achieved through peace and play.
It’s dreams like these that the Usain Bolt Foundation says it exists for; that electrifies the lightening bolt of its own super-hero whose meteoric rise to stardom started on a youthful whim and a dare.
And it is causes like the CVSS Summer Games that the Foundation says will compel them to continue shoe-ing more Jamaican youth with their own golden spikes to help them hurdle above their obstacles and sprint towards BIG DREAMS.
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