Nine Finalists Now Qualify for the $10,000 Grand Prize to be Announced in August.
Congratulations to the nine finalists who have each won a $500 ActivityHero Grant, which includes services from ActivityHero, GoDaddy, 4imprint and PsPrint. They now advance to the judging round and the Grand Prize Winner of $10,000 in cash and services will be chosen by a panel of judges. Stay tuned for the announcement on August 15, 2018.
The July Finalists
The three July finalists received many votes and reviews from their supporters. Here’s more about each of the finalists and how they would like to use the ActivityHero Grant.
Youth Technology Learning Center – YTLC came into existence in the service of promoting and propelling the undernourished technology focus needed in this world by providing a nurturing and fertile soil to firmly plant the seeds of STEM in future generations. They prime and empower their students to meet the diverse and emerging needs of a technology driven world.
“Our ultimate vision is to provide a STEM center for children in need who may not otherwise be able to afford such classes. A grant would greatly help us in our efforts to bring this dream to fruition.”
Cook n Grow – Through interactive learning, children are taught cooking and baking techniques, etiquette and table manners, cognitive measuring skills and more. Adults can enjoy Cook N Grow to learn how to make an exquisite dish themselves, or for a fun date night!
“We love our Community and give back constantly through our philanthropies. We give College Students an opportunity to have a flexible part time job while having a job they truly enjoy. Working with kids is so rewarding! We strongly believe that by teaching kids where food comes from and expose them to healthy habits, they’ll make better decisions about what to put into their bodies.”
Project Ember – We ask kids to dream big and work hard. Our projects are ambitious; creative thinking and curiosity alone won’t see us to the finish line. We need elbow grease and resilience to get it done. We need grit.Grit separates brilliant ideas from brilliant creations. Thinking is easy, starting is hard, and finishing can seem nearly impossible. Grit get us to the other side of the hurdles that stand between us and successfully bringing our ideas to life.
“We’re committed to making our program accessible to each and every child who wants to attend. Though we are still building toward solvency, we have said yes to almost 100% of the campers who have requested scholarships since our program began, giving away over $30k in financial assistance in 2018 alone…The ActivityHero grant would cover 1/6 of our scholarship requests, greatly alleviating the pressure on our organization to stay afloat while providing access to an inspiring group of young people.“
The June Finalists
The three June finalists collectively received 800 votes since April 1, 2018. Here’s more about each of the finalists and how they would like to use the ActivityHero Grant.
Wild Blue Ropes Adventure Park -Wild Blue Ropes’ camp offers specific daily activities that are balanced between structured and unstructured play. Campers learn how to work with others, build meaningful relationships, accept guidance, and develop decision-making skills. All of these life skills nurture independence and confidence. The unique, co-ed program is designed for ages 8 – 14 years.
“An ActivityHero Grant would help us grow Wild Blue Ropes Adventure Park’s offering – specifically our new NinjaFit Course… Once completed, the NinjaFit Course at Wild Blue Ropes will offer classes, open course, and personal training for individuals of all ages and abilities. Our focus is to provide yet another safe, healthy, outdoor challenge for visitors to enjoy.”
Golden Bear Gymnastics – At Golden Bear our coaches take great pride and care when instructing your children. Although a majority of our classes are as a group, our coaches pay close attention and work with each child individually to help build and emphasize their skill sets.
“Given the extensive facilities and skilled coaching required to run a gym, the cost of competitions, uniforms and travel, participating in gymnastics is often accessible only to children of families with financial means. We believe that all children can benefit from the lessons learned through gymnastics: discipline, hard work, teamwork, strength and agility, empowerment…We would be thrilled to use an ActivityHero Grant to provide scholarships to lower income youth who may not otherwise be able to participate in this transformative sport.”
Empower and Help – At Empower and Help we create future leaders with integrity that make this world a better place for themselves and others.Our camps and year round classes teach students to reach their highest potential by deepening their experience of life, focusing on positive mindset, possibilities and understanding how to integrate and maintain values such as love, respect, integrity, etc
“The ActivityHero grant will immensely assist us in:
1) Offering our workshops and classes to families who cannot afford at a subsidized rate or for free.
2) Training our team on advanced techniques through various courses to support our goal of empowering and helping others
3) Building the “Help” portion of our website which will be dedicated for social good projects and creating a searchable database on Mental health aid and resources.”
The May Finalists
The three May finalists collectively received 500 votes and 100 reviews since April 1, 2018. Here’s more about each of the finalists and how they would like to use the ActivityHero Grant.
Rock Band Land – Offering camps and classes for kids ages 5 to 12 in San Francisco, California, Rock Band Land focuses on creative expression and collaboration through rock music, storytelling, writing, video arts, fine arts, and movement. Here’s how they would use the ActivityHero Grant if they win the Grand Prize:
“In September 2018, we are expanding into a space that is almost four times the size of the current Rock Band Land Headquarters. We are incredibly excited for this move as it means that we can expand upon our programming and projects for our rockers and artists…An ActivityHero grant would allow us to use funds towards the purchase of instruments, computers, and materials to best outfit our classes.”
Tri-City Storm Soccer Club – Tri-City Storm Soccer Club provides members of all ages and skill levels the opportunity to play soccer and develop as individuals. They offer year-round programs for players as young as 4 up to 54 (or older). Between the Recreation, Academy, Select and Adult Programs, you are sure to find the perfect environment to play soccer and have fun! Here’s how they would use the ActivityHero Grant if they win the Grand Prize:
“Tri-City Storm Soccer Club is in the process of negotiating to purchase an indoor facility. This would allow us to grow our programs by providing us with a dedicated space to play soccer, even during our cold winter months. We also would like to expand our ability to provide soccer to the youngest members of our community through our Playground Legends program where we send coaches to daycares to hold camps at their facilities.”
Kerry Wynne, program administrator for the Club, said that in addition to the possibility of winning a grant, the grant contest is giving them an unexpected benefit of seeing how the community supports the club with votes and reviews. She says, “The reviews have come from participants in all of our programs, from recreational to competitive teams. It’s been so gratifying and motivating to see how much people care about our program.”
Kid Stock – At Kid Stock, they believe that everyone should have the chance to shine. Their mission is to help children from all backgrounds realize their potential through musical theater and self-expression during summer camps and after-school programs. Here’s how they would use the ActivityHero Grant if they win the Grand Prize:
“An ActivityHero Grant will help our business threefold. It will cover the increased operating expenses for our summer programs; it will support our move to our new headquarters without putting strain on our programs budget; and it will allow us to continue expanding our program options to meet the needs of returning and new participants alike. All in all, support from ActivityHero and votes from our Kid Stock families allow us to offer more of our programming for more children—that means more camp locations around the Bay Area, more dates for popular sites, and more kids learning the joys of self-expression and having their best summer yet!”
Gift Card Winners
The final three $25 ActivityHero gift card winners have been randomly selected as well, and are now eligible to have their gift card value increased to $100 if the activity provider they reviewed or voted for wins the Grand or Silver prizes in August.
Congratulations to:
- Heidi Vasconi (Voted for Golden Bear Gymnastics)
- Lauren Jones (Voted for Wild Blue Ropes Adventure Park)
- Brett Galvin (Voted for Empower and Help)
- Sharon Aris (Voted for Rock Band Land)
- Tina Stowman (Voted for Tri-City Storm Club)
- Katie Miller (Voted for Kid Stock)