The Importance of Youth Athletics

Pastor Frank Janzow’s description of Ascension's basketball and drama camps for their church and neighborhood youth prompted this blog about the shortage of athletic opportunities in Milwaukee’s Central City, especially compared to what is available to youth in the suburbs.

A good example is my grandson, who is the youngest of a six siblings, and whose Mother works very hard at a modest paying job, and until very recently, worked third shift. My grandson Mikaal participates in Little League Baseball, swimming, and tackle football because I drive him back and forth from Oshkosh every other weekend. He spends the summer with us here in Milwaukee.

This summer he participated in Le Club's swim team. If you watched the Olympics, you know that there was only one African American medal winner in swimming. Mikaal was one of the only 5 African Americans, out of at least 100 participants, in the swim meets he competed in at various country clubs in the area.

Of course, learning the skills of a sport is just one thing that a youth learns by participating on a team. For example, I had to teach my grandson to not "play the dozen's game" with the coaches and the kids on the Le Club swim team. Just last week I had a conversation with his tackle football coach about working with Mikaal to be more responsible, and not missing his team practices. My wife, Pat and I constantly drill Mikaal on planning, keeping his belongings in order, and following through. It’s a big responsibility for a 10 year old, but he has to manage his own calendar when he is in Oshkosh.

The YMCA in Oshkosh has a huge football program, with over 400 kids playing on the 7 football fields each Saturday from Sept to the end of October. Football is Mikaal’s favorite sport, and purchasing his helmet, shoulder pads, gloves, and pants in August has become a very enjoyable, end of summer ritual for both of us. There is no way he would be playing football if I did not purchase it for him. At his first game, his cousin was hanging out by the sideline, and expressed interest to one of the coaches in playing. Unfortunately, in Oshkosh, football equipment is supplied to 6th graders and older.

No such wide scale football programs for youth exist in Milwaukee for kids from the Central City. Little League Baseball is a similar story. At the “machine pitch” Little League tournament held every July, there were only two African American teams, while the balance, at least 12, were all from the East Side, Sherwood, and the suburbs. Mikaal played on the Lake Park Rockies, and although he missed half the games because the season starts while school is on, he had a good season.

The opportunities for cross cultural friendships in athletics are boundless. Mikaal has a wide range of friends, but only because I spend up to 8 hours a weekend driving him during the school year. Organized athletic programs for youth at Ascension provide similar opportunities for both sides of the economic pie. Sports for youth takes tremendous amount of resources, but anything we can do to give the kids in Milwaukee’s Central City a chance to participate will have long term results.