DICK’s ‘Sports Matter Program’ celebrates 10th anniversary with $2M grant initiative

ENDICOTT (WBNG) -- The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its “Sports Matter Program” with a new $2 million grant initiative.

Established in 2011, the DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation is a non-profit corporation with a mission of inspiring and enabling participation in sports. In 2014, The DICK’S Foundation created its flagship initiative, “The Sports Matter Program.”

DICK’s Foundation Vice President Rick Jordan said the primary objective of the program is to provide grants to break down the barriers that prevent children from playing youth sports.

“We’re so proud of the work we get to do with our sports matter program,” said Jordan. “We believe at DICK’s that sports change lives and a big component of that is youth in our community.”

A new program created in 2023 by the DICK’s Foundation, “75 for 75,” provides 75 “Sports Matter” grants of $75,000 each to youth sports programs around the country. The measure seeks to provide equipment, like bats, gloves, helmets and batting cages. It also seeks to provide dugouts and field space.

Johnson City Little League Baseball Coach and Board Member Matt Zelesnikar told 12 Sports that the JC Little League first received a $10,000 grant three years ago from the foundation. DICK’S has since stayed in contact with Zelesnikar about further funding for the league.

“And he just kept asking questions about what we needed for the programs, both baseball and softball,” said Zelesnikar. “I just kept listing things off, and he’s like, ‘What else do you need? What else do you need?’ And I just kept listing things off, and he never gave me a number of what we were going to shoot for, but it ended up being the $75,000 sports matter grant, and we’ve used that money pretty effectively.”

Softball Coach Matt Murphy, who is on the JC Little League board with Zelesknikar, said he believes the sky is the limit for the league’s future growth.

“We want to grow this league,” said Murphy. “The whole idea of this is to have kids fall in love with baseball and softball and sports in general. So, the more ways we’re able to provide the best experience possible for the kids as well as reduce the cost. If we can open doors for any kid regardless of their financial situation to be able to play softball or baseball in Johnson City, that’s the goal.”

Zelesnikar, who used to play on the same fields in Johnson City thirty years ago, said he is trying to make the league like what he remembers it as as a child.

“What they did for us and the kids, we can never repay,” said Zelesnikar. “We’re just thankful every single day, and we have a bunch of kids who are taking full advantage of it. We gained four new teams between softball and baseball, so kids are coming out. We’re able to lower the costs to play, and it’s fun to give back.”

“75 for 75″ distributed more than $5.6 million in 2023. The local community has undoubtedly recognized DICKS’s initiative to focus on youth sports in under-resourced communities. Union Endicott, Susquehanna Valley, Windsor, and the Binghamton school district have all received money from the Sports Matter Program as well.