The Sports Business & Leadership Association’s Why

August 8, 2018

David Lisko – President

 

Entrepreneurial and inspirational minded individuals have heard numerous quotes about “finding your why.”

“When you find your why, you find a way to make it happen.” Erica Thomas

“The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.” Mark Twain

“There is no greater gift you can give or receive than to honor your calling. It’s why you were born. And how you become most truly alive.” Oprah Winfrey

“He who has a why to live can bear with almost any how.” Friedrich Nietzche

Essentially, “finding your why” is said to be an essential step to reaching maximum success individually and organizationally. The Sports Business & Leadership Association, Inc. (“SBLA”) has as strong a “why” as any charitable organization. You may think you know the SBLA’s “why” but you might be surprised by what I believe our “why” is.

Over the past few years the SBLA has hosted dozens of underprivileged children to spectacular sports experiences. We have taken underprivileged children charter fishing. We have taken underprivileged children skiing in Aspen. We have taken underprivileged children to numerous games, including in club suites; buying them food, drinks and team merchandise. We took a group of underprivileged children to a NASCAR race, which they got to watch from the pits. We have paid for numerous underprivileged children to attend sports camps, participate in tournaments, or play on teams. And during some of these events we have introduced these children to individuals they would not otherwise have had the opportunity to meet, such as business executives, professional athletes, community leaders and politicians.

After many of these sports experiences, I receive feedback from the children themselves, from their parents, or from their guardians. Obviously, these are expressions of gratitude. Surprising to me, the general message I repeatedly hear is that the children are thankful to the SBLA for making them “feel alive,” in some instances for the first time in a very long time. And to me, this means that (at least in some cases) these children do not “feel alive” during their day-to-day lives and rarely have experiences that they deem to make them “feel alive.” The societal cause of why these children feel this way is important to figure out but irrelevant to the SBLA’s purposes. Our mission is to help as many children as possible “feel alive.”

The heartbeat of SBLA is serving underprivileged children. We aspire to help everyone we come in contact with “feel alive” through providing opportunities to participate in unique sports experiences. We solicit charitable donations from individuals, companies, and organizations so that we can make underprivileged children “feel alive.”  That is what we are working for. Our goal is to inspire these children to overcome adversity, set goals for themselves, and achieve those goals. Through our efforts, the opportunity to serve helps our members “feel alive” too, providing the space to step away from our busy work lives and focus on those in need.

The SBLA’s “why” inspires our members to continue working hard to provide opportunity for the children and parents we serve.

Are you interested in learning more about SBLA, joining one of our chapters, or donating to our cause? See the “Contact” page on our website for more information.