The Challenged Athletes Foundation recently announced it raised $2.85 million at its 10th anniversary event, A Celebration of Heroes, Heart and Hope Gala. According to a Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF) press release, the funds will support the Access for Athletes Grand Program, which offers grants to help athletes with physical challenges pay for adaptive sports equipment, travel and training expenses. The funds also support CAF’s mentorship programs and annual free sports clinics.
The event was hosted by The Today Show’s Willie Geist and Dylan Dreyer and featured a live wheelchair motocross and skate demonstration by Christiaan “Otter” Bailey and his mentee, 9-year-old Kumaka Jensen.
“The transformational power of physical activity and sports should be accessible to everyone. No grants to individuals with physical challenges should go unfunded. It is thanks to our dedicated supporters who stand beside the Challenged Athletes Foundation in this premise that allow us to make this a reality,” Scott Stackman, CAF board member and managing director of UBS Private Wealth Management, said in the release. “We gather to celebrate a decade of difference displayed by the achievements of challenged athletes all over the world, but we also know there are people who still need our support to realize their athletic goals. The $2.85 million raised and still counting as the donations and support keep coming in from the New York community, will help the Challenged Athletes Foundation increase the number of athletes and their families who can benefit from our programs and support.”
The Access for Athletes Program distributed a record 2,098 grants for the 2016 season in April, at a collective value of more than $3.7 million.
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