INDIANAPOLIS---Wilson and the NCAA are partnering to benefit St. Louis youth long after the 2009 Women’s Final Four champion is crowned by providing new basketball uniforms to several youth organizations.
“ The high-quality Wilson basketball uniforms will help make each young athlete feel like they are an important part of the team,” said Mike Kuehne, general manager of Wilson Basketball, who helped distribute uniforms on Wednesday, April 1 in St. Louis.
Sue Donohoe, NCAA vice-president of Division I Women’s Basketball, said the NCAA and St. Louis community leaders worked together to identify a wide variety of youth organizations to distribute the uniforms.
The uniforms will be distributed to four St. Louis area youth organizations: the Herbert Hoover Boys & Girls Club; the Matthews-Dickey Boys & Girls Club; Girls Incorporated of St. Louis; and the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Foundation.
For many community-based organizations across America, the first step to increasing youth participation in sports involves uniforms. Unfortunately, under the current economic climate far too many communities find themselves strapped for cash and unable to provide young athletes with any type of team attire.
“ Herbert Hoover Boys & Girls Club is thrilled with the generous donation from Wilson Sporting Goods! It is a wonderful testament to the value they place on youth development, especially the well-being of girls,” said Flint W. Fowler, president of the Herbert Hoover Boys & Girls Club, who accepted the donations on behalf of his organization.
Wilson Sporting Goods Company has a long and proud history of supporting NCAA programs and initiatives, including providing the Official Basketball of the NCAA Men’s and Women’s basketball championships. From raising awareness and funds for breast cancer research to supporting youth sports programs nationwide, Wilson is pleased to partner with the NCAA.
“ Wilson and the NCAA share a common goal,” said Wilson President Chris Considine. “Our strong partnership and our commitment to encouraging youth sports initiatives makes it easy to donate uniforms that help get kids out on the court.”
About the NCAA
The NCAA is a membership-led nonprofit association of colleges and universities committed to supporting academic and athletic opportunities for more than 400,000 student-athletes at more than 1,000 member colleges and universities. Each year, more than 54,000 student-athletes compete in NCAA Championships in Division I, II and III sports. Visit www.ncaa.org and www.ncaa.com for more details about the Association.
About Wilson
Chicago-based Wilson Sporting Goods Co., a division of Amer Sports, is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of sports equipment. The company designs, manufactures and distributes advanced equipment that helps players improve their performance. Wilson’s core categories include Baseball, Football, Basketball, Softball, Bats, Volleyball, Soccer, Youth Sports, Uniforms/Apparel, Golf, Footwear, and Racquet Sports (Tennis, Racquetball, Squash, Badminton and Platform Tennis).
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