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What is Upward?
Upward is a national children’s sports program, based in Spartanburg, South
Carolina, designed to give children and their families a positive
sports experience by partnering with local churches to build character,
self esteem and salvation through Upward Basketball, Upward
Cheerleading, Upward Soccer and Upward Camp. This season more than 800,000 people will be a part of the Upward experience across the United States. More than 500,000 kindergarten through sixth grade children will participate. Over 300,000 volunteers will staff Upward programs in nearly 1000 partnering churches of different denominations. The goal of Upward Unlimited is to recognize the winner in every child.
Why is Upward necessary?
A USA TODAY survey found that “seven in ten children would not care if no one kept score at their games. Four in ten wished their parents did not come to their games. Too
many kids secretly hate playing organized sports because of the
pressure to win or the rejection they feel when they make a mistake.” The
purpose of Upward Unlimited is to recognize the winner in every child
by offering a non-competitive, non-threatening environment where every
participant gets equal playing time in each game. Every child will receive an award following each game to recognize a positive contribution he or she made that day. All children who participate will also receive a special award at the end of the season during an awards ceremony. Upward Unlimited is committed to doing whatever it takes to recognize that “Every Child Is A Winner.”
How does Upward Operate?
Upward
strives to provide first-class, organized, and detailed administrative
tools, services, materials and support to its ministry partners. This mindset has helped Upward grow from one church to nearly 1500 across the country in just seven years. Each
partnering church has attended an Upward Leadership Training Conference
to learn the leadership techniques and special rules necessary to
conduct an Upward league in their community.