The Vice President of Northeast Seattle Little League, Ted Foster, recently spoke out about the lucrative permit fees the league has to pay, which make up more than 60% of its operating budget, and have only resulted in fields that are now in “absolute complete disrepair.”

Jake Skorheim and Spike O’Neill, co-hosts of “The Jake and Spike Show” on KIRO Newsradio, condemned the city’s practice of consistently raising permit fees year after year while failing to provide children with a safe place to compete in organized athletics.

“The people who are showing up to play on the weekend, they go around, and parents are having to come and bring wheelbarrows and shovels to try and fix these problems,” Jake said. “These are not leagues that are making a ton of money. These are just people volunteering their time, and it’s all going into facilitating the beautiful, wonderful thing that is literally youth sports. This, to me, seems wrong.”

Seattle Parks’ steep permit fees result in poor field conditions

In an exclusive interview on Seattle Red 770 AM, Foster revealed that more than $120,000 in permit costs will be paid to the city by the district for “the worst field conditions out of every district that there is.”

Additionally, Jake noted that the Seattle Parks’ annual operating budget is $228 million, yet the kids continue to suffer from poor field conditions every week.

“Their operating budget is $228 million, and they can’t fill a dog hole,” Jake said. “That’s a real problem, because these kids are now suffering as a result, and they’re not going to want to play at these parks.”

Spike claimed that rising costs to rent a field, whether it is usable or not, will eventually divert funds from important equipment that children need to play each game.

“When 60% of a little league or association’s operating budget goes to rent a field that is unusable, that’s money coming out of uniforms, ball game equipment, all the little things, trophies,” Spike said. “What does the city want us to do, sponsorships? You want us to get Chico’s Bail Bonds out there? That would be great.”

“They won’t allow it. You can’t put advertising stuff out there,” Jake responded. “The parents even volunteered. They said, ‘Can we raise money to help the situation?’ and they said, ‘That’s not going to work for us.’ I don’t know if they want kids. Honestly, I don’t know if Seattle Parks wants kids on their field. I think they would rather have dogs.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

Listen to “The Jake and Spike Show” weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.

Key Takeaways

• LA84 Foundation awarded $1,781,000 to 19 organizations across six Southern California counties, focusing on communities where cost, transportation, and facility access limit youth sports participation
• Large grant applications (minimum $25,000) are now open through December 19, with organizations invited to submit Letters of Interest for programs promoting sports exposure and exploration
• Over 4,400 youth will benefit from recent grants, including 1,700 students in Compton Unified’s expanded after-school sports program and 1,000 participants in AYSO’s Imperial County expansion
• Recent awards reached 45% girls and 55% boys, with the majority of funding directed to programs serving Latino (43%), White (35%), and Black/African American (8%) youth across Southern California
• The foundation serves eight counties as a legacy of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, offering both large grants ($25,000+) and small grants ($5,000-25,000, open year-round)

Current Grant Cycle Targets Access and Equity

The LA84 Foundation has opened its large grant cycle for 2025, accepting Letters of Interest through December 19. Organizations in Imperial, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Ventura Counties can apply for grants of $25,000 or more to support youth programs that promote sports exposure and exploration.

Selected organizations will receive invitations to complete full applications. The foundation also maintains a year-round small grant program for awards ranging from $5,000 to $25,000. Full criteria and application materials are available on LA84’s grants page.

As a legacy organization from the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, the foundation has supported youth sports access in Southern California for over four decades.

Recent Awards Eliminate Barriers Across Six Counties

The foundation recently distributed $1,781,000 to 19 organizations providing school-based and community youth sports programs in L.A., Riverside, Orange, Imperial, Santa Barbara, and Ventura Counties. According to Renata Simril, President and CEO of the LA84 Foundation, the grants address specific barriers to participation.

“These grants focus on access, belonging, and possibility,” Simril said. “From Boyle Heights to Compton, from Imperial County to the Inland Empire, we are investing in coaches, providing safe places to play, and supporting inclusive programs that help youth succeed both in school and in life.”

The grants emphasize removing financial and logistical obstacles that prevent youth participation, including program fees, transportation costs, equipment expenses, and facility access.

District and Community Programs Expand Free Sports Access

Compton Unified School District received funding to expand free after-school sports to 25 campuses while eliminating fees and transportation barriers for elementary and middle school students. The grant covers coach stipends, staff training, equipment, and uniforms for programs in flag football, basketball, soccer, volleyball, baseball, and track and field. At least 1,700 Compton students will participate in leagues competing against other CUSD schools.

Variety Boys & Girls Club in Boyle Heights will expand year-round leagues at no cost to families. Throughout the year, 900 members participate in baseball, softball, flag football, basketball, soccer, volleyball, or swimming. The club operates a comprehensive aquatic program using an onsite four-lane pool.

“Every child deserves access to safe spaces where they can engage in athletic activities with their peers that build confidence and healthy habits,” said Patricia Siqueiros, Executive Director of Variety Boys & Girls Club. “It is an investment in a healthier and more equitable future for our community’s youth.”

The P.F. Bresee Foundation will use its grant for the Bresee Athletics League, engaging middle and high school students through futsal, soccer, basketball, and volleyball leagues in Central Los Angeles. More than 325 youth benefit from this funding.

Specialized Programs Address Retention and Rural Access

Several grants target specific participation challenges. Students Run LA will expand its Female Ambassador Program and provide sports bras and health products to support retention and well-being among girl participants. Girls on the Run Riverside received funding to add teams and coach stipends to maintain program quality.

The YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles’ Crenshaw Classic Track & Field Youth Initiative offers free, certified competitions in South Los Angeles and Inglewood. The program provides track and field training over two eight-week seasons in 15 local schools, with mentorship from Olympians and college athletes. It culminates in the Crenshaw Classic track meet, a no-cost certified competition with official times and rankings. Over 500 youth will benefit from this Olympic-focused initiative.

To reach rural communities, LA84 funded AYSO’s expansion of its PLAY! model in Imperial County for clinics, coach training, and no- to low-cost soccer programs. The investment is expected to benefit 1,000 Imperial County youth.

“With LA84’s support, AYSO PLAY! will train local leaders and engage over 1,000 kids in Imperial County at no cost, building a foundation for sustainable, low-cost soccer programs in the years ahead,” said Blane Shepard, AYSO National Director of Community Engagement and Business Development.

Grant Portfolio Spans Multiple Sports and Demographics

The fall grant docket reached girls (45%) and boys (55%), with participation from Latino (43%), White (35%), Black/African American (8%), Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (5%), Asian (4%), and other/multiracial youth.

Funded programs support a diverse sports ecosystem including running, track and field, soccer, squash, skateboarding, and multi-sport learn-to-play programs. The grants share a common goal of closing the play equity gap by meeting youth where they are and providing inclusive coaching, safe facilities, and accessible environments.

Foundation Maintains Focus on Community Infrastructure

LA84’s approach emphasizes building sustainable local capacity rather than one-time program funding. Recent grants support coach stipends, staff training, facility improvements, and equipment that enable organizations to maintain and expand programs over time.

“Play unlocks possibility,” Simril said. “These LA84 Foundation grants strengthen the coaches, spaces, and community bonds that help young people build healthy bodies, resilient minds, and the confidence to lead.”

Organizations interested in the current large grant cycle have until December 19 to submit Letters of Interest for programs that expand sports access in Southern California communities.

via: sports examiner

photo: alliance for justice

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A sense of urgency, camaraderie and excitement was on full display at the Wisconsin Youth Climate Conference hosted here at Madison College on November 22. More than 200 youths, ranging in age from junior high to college, and some from as far away as Onalaska, converged on the Truax campus to demonstrate, observe and network for the sake of climate and ecological action.
Most attendees were in high school, including the four leading members of the event’s steering committee: Ella Ahner, Ayelet Blum, Madeleine Bohn and Nina Zhu.
“It’s really inspiring to see how many people can come together to manifest change,” said Ahner, who attends DeForest Area High School. “This conference is proof that we can work together for a better future.”
“This conference was a turning point for me,” said Zhu, now a senior at Memorial High School, recounting her attendance during her freshman year. “It inspired me to join other organizations and the committee. I hope this conference has the same impact on others that it had on me.”
More than 30 schools were represented at the event. Students from more than 20 of those schools presented at exhibit tables to share the accomplishments of their organizations.
“This conference is a way of bringing us all together to make change as a collective,” said Blum, a junior at Madison West High School. “The climate crisis is affecting every one of us, and if we can all work together we’ll make a bigger impact.”
“It’s powerful to see all these different green clubs with their individual projects coming together,” added Bohn, a senior also from Madison West. “These people are doing some incredible things, and I know a lot of attendees walk away feeling inspired, myself included.”
Facilitating the youths’ in their planning and execution of the conference was a cadre of sustainability enthusiasts with ties to green efforts across Dane County.
“We’re a fun aggregation of people from many different walks of life,” said Armila Aeilts. Aeilts teaches Environmental Science here at Madison College, and is the only faculty on the steering committee. “We have a lot of different perspectives and skill sets and opinions coming in to make this conference a success.”
The elder members of the steering committee are unified on empowering the youths to take the lead in planning the conference. “The power of it is that the youth are picking what we’re talking about and how we’re talking about it,” said Kathy Kuntz, the Director of the Dane County Office of Energy and Climate Change. “The folks like me on the steering committee were just logistical support. The youths are leading the conversation.”
The entire conference comes as a result and acknowledgement of the real-world ecological facts facing younger generations. “Young people today are not just witnesses to the climate crisis,” said Zhu as she introduced the event’s keynote speaker. “We are inheritors, and we refuse to inherit a planet that’s destroyed.”
The keynote speaker was Jerome Foster II, who, starting while he was 18, served as an advisor to the Biden administration on its Environmental Justice Advisory Council.
“For so many of us, we feel like we don’t have a place to sit at the table of the future,” said Foster, acknowledging the immense difficulties of resisting and shifting the tyranny of the status quo. Yet Foster exhorted the gathered youths to action, encouraging them to recognize the unique advantages that youth brings to the political process. “We’re not jaded by what is politically normal or politically possible. We’re motivated by what’s morally possible.”
Before and after the keynote speech, attendees presented their own schools’ initiatives and toured others’. Among the tables was Madison College’s own Green Club. Helping at the table was Avery Kluever, a high school student taking classes full-time at MC and a new Green Club member.
“It’s always important to look for ideas because you can’t really think of everything yourself,” said Kluever, gesturing at the numerous displays around the room. “I’m hoping to see what other people are doing, and bring ideas back to our Green Club.”
“I feel like Madison College should make a bigger deal about all the sustainability things they’ve done,” said Ruby Katsihtis, a MC sophomore also helping table for the Green Club. “They have the solar panels and the compost machine, and they have done so many other things. But they don’t really make a big deal about it. Those are things worth talking about and promoting.”
“Everyone who’s here showed up of their own accord, and they’re leading by example,” said Quinn Mattsson, president of the Madison College Green Club. “That’s the first step: showing up.”
When asked for his advice to youths just starting out in sustainability movements, Mattsson nodded toward the core principle of the entire conference. “Find people who are excited by the same things you are, and people who are doing the things that you’re excited about, because they’re out there. You just have to find them.”

Posted December 09, 2025 in Press Releases

CLEVELAND, OH – Dec. 9, 2025 – More than 700 participants from 16 states and Canada will participate in the largest pickleball tournament in the Midwest this weekend, Dec. 11-14. The third annual Pickle in the Land, presented by Akron Children’s, will take place at the Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland.

The event is cohosted by Greater Cleveland Sports Commission and Rock Entertainment Group. Monica Gustin, Senior Vice President of Business Strategy and Event Operations for Greater Cleveland Sports Commission, is available for interview. Media interested in an interview or attending the event should contact Nicole Carlone Losi at nlosi@clevelandsports.org.

The full schedule can be found here. Please note that start times are subject to change. Spectators can come for free and enjoy a vendor village, activities and more.

On Saturday, Dec. 13, Greater Cleveland Sports Commission will host an all-abilities Pickleball Clinic, presented by Akron Children’s, at Pickle in the Land. The clinic will consist of a free day of programming for youth from City of Cleveland Recreation Centers (ages 8-15). Athletes and coaches from Empower Sports will teach the basics of pickleball, and participants will engage in health and wellness activities including Yoga provided by ZenWorks. Participants will take home pickleball equipment and additional giveaways as part of the program’s commitment to eliminating barriers to participating in sports. More on Greater Cleveland Sports Commission’s Youth Education through Sports (YES) Program, presented by The Sherwin-Williams Company, can be found here.

Bank of America, one of the world’s leading financial institutions, will be featured prominently on the Timbers’ home and away kits beginning in 2026, marking the first time it has been featured on a professional sports jersey. This partnership is part of Bank of America’s broader, ongoing commitment to supporting communities through soccer. Bank of America is also an official sponsor for FIFA World Cup 26 and U.S. Soccer.

“The Timbers are a tremendous asset to Portland, and this partnership is an opportunity to strengthen ties in the community and create meaningful economic impact across the region,” said Roger Hinshaw, Bank of America Oregon and Southwest Washington president. “Our collaboration goes well beyond the pitch, as we build programs that create greater access for youth to experience soccer and deliver lasting benefits throughout the community.”

The partnership introduces Bank of America’s Soccer with Us to the Portland community. The initiative aims to make soccer more inclusive and accessible, and will extend this national platform across Oregon and Southwest Washington.

Soccer with Us is designed to remove barriers to play and promote equity through grassroots investments in the community. The program will be activated locally through a series of youth-centric efforts, including free camps, equipment donations and infrastructure improvements:

• The partnership includes the development of “Community Futsal Courts,” with plans to build and or resurface 10 futsal courts over the course of the partnership in Portland and underserved communities throughout Oregon. The initiative will provide new goals, nets, and soccer equipment to enhance safe and inclusive spaces for play.
• The “Camps for All” program will offer 50 free youth soccer camps at Providence Park and select community locations, engaging 5,000 young athletes across the region. 250 scholarships to PTFC Camps will be awarded, resulting in 750,000 minutes of youth soccer exposure.
• Through the “Equipped to Play” initiative, the Timbers and Bank of America will donate $200,000 worth of soccer equipment to local schools and community groups. The effort will support 1,000 youth, including Special Olympics athletes, providing them with essential gear such as jerseys, balls, socks, backpacks, and ball bags.

Additionally, Bank of America is committed to strengthening economic opportunities throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington, and will invest in the city through a program aimed at supporting local small businesses with the following initiatives:

• Through “First Match Access Pass,” the Timbers and Bank of America will provide 100 tickets per game to individuals who have never been to a match, with the intention of introducing low-income families, local youth organizations, and new residents to the Portland Timbers community.
• As part of the “Small Business of the Game” platform, Bank of America will select 50 local small businesses over the course of the partnership to promote at home Timbers games, and each will receive a $5,000 grant.
• “Game Changers of Tomorrow” will identify 20 students over the course of the partnership who demonstrate exceptional promise to be given a VIP experience at a Timbers match and receive an educational grant for making a difference in their school or community.
• Bank of America will annually host the “Small Business Summit” at Providence Park, welcoming over 100 local businesses to attend and benefit from workshops, panels and keynote speakers, networking and more.
• As a co-presenting partner of “Stand Together,” Bank of America will support the club’s annual week-long community initiative, serving non-profit projects and in-person volunteer opportunities across Portland.

The club partnered with Elevate to secure the jersey partnership with Bank of America.

A partner of the club since 2014, Tillamook will transition its representation on Portland’s jerseys to the sleeve patch after two years of being displayed on the front.

“Tillamook has been an incredible partner of the club, and we’re excited to continue our relationship for years to come,” Davis said. “Their move to the sleeve patch reflects their enduring support of the club and shared commitment to our community.”

The Oregon-based, farmer-owned dairy cooperative will continue its support of the club’s community programs, partnering with Stand Together, PTFC Camps, and activating other local youth initiatives.

“We’re thrilled to continue our partnership with the Portland Timbers — a team that shares our deep Oregon roots and commitment to community, and excellence. As fellow champions of the Pacific Northwest, we’re grateful for the opportunity to keep celebrating what makes this region so special, both on the field and at the table.” Kate Boltin, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Tillamook shared.

The Portland Timbers are an American men’s professional soccer club based in Portland, Ore., that plays their home matches at the iconic Providence Park. Founded in 1975, the Timbers have been a beloved part of the Portland sports landscape since their early beginnings in the North American Soccer League, launching the era of “Soccer City USA” in the Rose City. The club joined Major League Soccer (MLS) – the top division of men’s professional soccer in the United States – in 2011, winning its first league championship in 2015.

Bank of America is one of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving nearly 70 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 3,600 retail financial centers, approximately 15,000 ATMs (automated teller machines) and award-winning digital banking with approximately 59 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 4 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Jill Farley, Portland Timbers
Phone: 1.503.896.2827
jfarley@timbers.com

Britney Sheehan, Bank of America
Phone: 1.425.467.9744
britney.w.sheehan@bofa.com