Volume 5 | January 2019
Active Lives. Empowered Futures.
Welcome to BAWSI E-News!
Save the Date
  • BAWSI Girls Game Day sponsored by Kaiser Permanente South Bay – join us for a Santa Clara University women's basketball game on Saturday, February 9, 2019 at 2:00 pm in the Leavey Center for our annual BAWSI Girls Game Day. A regular part of our programming, Game Day is a special day when we bring all of our BAWSI Girls on to a college campus to sweat and move in a pre-game clinic, then cheer for the Lady Broncos in the stands. We hope you can join us to see them taking it all in. Game Day requires lots of female athlete volunteers – contact courtney@bawsi.org if you and/or your team want to help.

  • Mark your calendars for BAWSI’s annual fundraising event and help us “Light Up the Night” on Friday, May 3, 2019 at Villa Ragusa in downtown Campbell. No fancy dress attire required, just come in your favorite sports jersey and experience the fun and impact of BAWSI. We’re always looking for table captains and sponsors; if you can help, email us at sherri@bawsi.org or call (408) 247-2544
Fall Season of BAWSI Brings Active Lives and Empowered Futures to 628 Children
More children, more impact – that’s what our evaluation numbers told us and so did the participants, parents and teachers. “I act different. When I feel angry, I want to exercise now.” That’s what one of our BAWSI Girls told us in her focused interview at the close of the fall season. 94% of our BAWSI Girls parents surveyed told us that their daughters want to do more physical activity since joining BAWSI. 89% of those parents told us they’ve seen positive changes in their daughter’s behavior since joining BAWSI. One parent told us, “It teaches her teamwork and how to get along with others. She talks about how much fun BAWSI is and wants to join next year. She feels more confident in herself.”

BAWSI Rollers added a new school site for medically fragile children at Anne Darling School in San Jose. All of our BAWSI Rollers students enjoyed another spirited semester of teamwork and play. When asked why BAWSI Rollers is important to her students, one of the special education teachers at Blackford Elementary School told us, “BAWSI allows them to fully participate in physical activities that do not put any limitations on their involvement. It allows my students to be who they are and do what they CAN do!”

Our Athlete Leaders are the hearts and hands of our BAWSI programs. They are the connected coaches who model and teach health, wholeness, leadership and teamwork. Meet this year’s coaches here .
BAWSI Rollers Game Day and Post-Game Clinic
BAWSI Rollers participants from the Pediatric Subacute Center, were hosted at a Santa Clara University women’s basketball game, where they cheered the Broncos on to victory and participated in a post-game clinic with the team! SCU senior Dru Toleafoa rallied her teammates to hustle back on the court after the game to provide a high energy clinic for our BAWSI Rollers.

Thanks to the organization from the BAWSI Athlete Leadership Team and the coaching staff from SCU, this was a game to remember!   
Collegiate and High School Volunteer Participation
With a total of 507 volunteer appearances this Fall season, our high school and collegiate volunteers logged 662.5 hours on our BAWSI Girls and BAWSI Rollers playgrounds! We had participation from college’s including Santa Clara University, San Jose State University, Gavilan College, Evergreen Valley College, West Valley College, San Jose City College as well as participation from local high schools including Presentation, Castilleja, Sequoia, Notre Dame San Jose, Priory, Mitty, Wilcox and Sacred Heart Prep. A variety of 12 different sports were represented on the playgrounds! We appreciate these valuable leaders and realize that they are choosing to spend their precious limited time with the BAWSI Girls and Rollers.

Want to get involved? Contact Courtney Good ( courtney@bawsi.org ) to get your team or company on the volunteer schedule!
BAWSI Site Visits
Dorsa Elementary and Blackford Elementary were the gracious school sites to open their doors for visitors to see how the BAWSI programs work on the playgrounds.  
BAWSI Launches Foundation for the Future
We are excited to announce that BAWSI has begun to fuel our next phase of growth with the Foundation for the Future campaign. Based on the current needs in the community and the recommendation of the team from Harvard Business School Community Partners, we have launched a campaign to raise an additional $250,000 to invest in strategic operational investments that will position us solidly to expand our impact and reach more children.
 
We invite you to join us as we create even more Active Lives and Empowered Futures.
Sharks Alums and BAWSI Partner to Bring Sports to ALL Children
The Sharks Alumni Foundation honored BAWSI’s work at their annual Celebrity Luncheon in downtown San Jose this past November. The generosity kept coming as the Foundation then hosted a Bocce tournament in December to benefit BAWSI. We are honored to be recognized and thrilled to put their generosity to work this spring on the playgrounds. Special thanks to Douglas Murray, President of the Sharks Alumni Foundation, and David Hayes and Craig Jones of Skyline Construction, presenting sponsor of both events.
Fore! Legends of Sports Celebrity Golf Tournament Benefits BAWSI
Thank you to former San Francisco 49ers Junior Bryant and Derrick Deese for choosing BAWSI as their charity beneficiary of the 3 rd Annual Legends of Sport Celebrity Golf Tournament at Cinnabar Golf Club last August. Co-CEOs Jennifer Smith and Jen Fraisl and BAWSI’s Board Chair, Susan Munne represented BAWSI on the links.  Thank you to all of the golfers and sports celebrities who participated and contributed to BAWSI!
Citrix highlights BAWSI at Michelle Obama SAP event
Our friends at Citrix graciously offered their suite to entertain BAWSI guests at the sold-out Michelle Obama book tour. Founder Brandi Chastain and Co-CEO Jen Fraisl shared the BAWSI story, and BAWSI Board Member Lea Ann Eblin gave each guest a copy of Michelle Obama’s book to mark the occasion. Thank you to Lea Ann and her coworkers at Citrix for hosting an unforgettable evening!
Welcome Sherri Shaner, BAWSI's new Development Director
We are thrilled to announce that Sherri Shaner has joined our team as our Development Director! Sherri was most recently at First Place for Youth, and prior to that spent many years as Development Director for RAFT and Peninsula Bridge. Welcome Sherri!
Michelle Ray joins the BAWSI Board of Directors
We are pleased to welcome one new member to our Board of Directors. Michelle Ray has joined the BAWSI Board after years spent with us in partnership for BAWSI Rollers as a special education lead teacher at Montague Elementary, and most recently, as a special education lead for post-secondary students in the Santa Clara Unified School District.

Special thanks to Lennies Gutierrez of Comcast who is rolling off our Board after multiple terms of Board membership, several years on our Advisory Council, and significant contribution and support.
  To make an online donation, please complete the secure form.
BAWSI is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization (federal tax ID #55-0897084)
  Active Lives. Empowered Futures.
Bay Area Women's Sports Initiative | 1922 The Alameda, Suite 420 | San Jose, CA 95126 | 408.247.2544 |
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