We are happy to announce that Windy City Hoops has met its online goal of $62,000!

Mayor Emanuel and the Chicago Parks Foundation want to thank everyone who contributed to the program on Indiegogo.

The league’s opening night is April 19 and hundreds of young men will begin a year-long season of Friday and Saturday night basketball at park field houses throughout Chicago.

This program provides productive opportunities for youth who might otherwise be without structured recreation options. The generosity of Indiegogo supporters of Windy City Hoops is key to the success of this program and we are grateful for your support.

Windy City Hoops

Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Chicago native and Basketball Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas, and the Chicago Parks Foundation have asked all of Chicago to step up and support programs that reduce violence and give alternatives to at-risk youth and young adults.

Now, you will have the opportunity to help the Park District expand its successful teen basketball program - “Windy City Hoops” – by making a donation to support the purchase of a jersey, pay a referee for a game, reserve a court or support another part of the program. With the ambitious goal of raising $62,000 in 60 days, the Park District needs to come a long way in a short time, and your support today will make all the difference. Check out the options on the right side of the page to see how you can help, either by becoming a “FAN,” an “MVP,” a “COACH,” or by giving a custom donation. At the individual donor level, each donation will have a tangible benefit to basketball league participants. 

Basketball programming has a proven impact on providing youth with alternatives to drugs, gangs, and violence, and the $62,000 raised on this page will go toward funding a year-round basketball league hosted by the Park District on Friday and Saturday nights in targeted communities across the city. The leagues will operate in 10 parks, opening up an additional 3,200 opportunities for at-risk youth ages 13-17. The leagues will operate from 7-10pm on Fridays and 5-10pm on Saturdays, a substantial expansion that will double the total number of hours of teen basketball programming provided by the Park District year-round.

Mayor Emanuel believes in comprehensive strategies that provide multiple options for young people to learn important skills in a safe environment, and the Windy City Hoops program will build on recent administrative initiatives to expand upon proven programs that provide at-risk youth with jobs, training, and mentoring. This includes the City’s recent expansion of the Becoming a Man and launch of the Greencorps youth program.  For more information on these recent efforts, visit: http://bit.ly/UANoyM.

Locations:

10 parks spread across eight community areas were chosen for Windy City Hoops:

• Loyola (Rogers Park)
• Amundsen (Austin)
• Columbus (Austin)
• Garfield (East Garfield)
• Franklin (North Lawndale)
• Kennicott (Kenwood)
• Jackson (Woodlawn)
• Ogden (Englewood)
• Hamilton (Englewood)
• Fernwood (Roseland)

Help us build young leaders on and off the court, Chicago. Donate now to Windy City Hoops!

WINDY CITY HOOPS is sponsored by the Chicago Parks Foundation, the philanthropic partner of the Chicago Park District.