anniversary Archives - Athletes for Hope

Celebrating 10 Years of Athletes for Hope

Celebrating 10 Years of Athletes for Hope

Dear Friends,

Athletes for Hope Founder Muhammad Ali once said, “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.”

In following Muhammad’s vision of serving others, 12 Founding Athletes officially launched Athletes for Hope in October 2006 with the mission of educating athletes about smart philanthropy and helping to guide them along their own philanthropic journeys. This month, we celebrate 10 incredible years of carrying out this vision and we are proud to share a few highlights of our work with you.

Since our inception, AFH has created over 2,000 connections between athletes and charities, and our athlete membership has grown from our original 12 Founders to now more than 3,000 athlete members. We have facilitated our philanthropy education workshops for over 3,500 athletes this decade including professional, Olympic and now, college athletes.

In fact, our fastest growing initiative is Athletes for Hope University. We have partnered with best-in-class organizations such as Nike and The Pennington Family Foundation to expand our AFH U program to 5 colleges and universities and are expanding to even more in 2017.

Over the past 10 years, we have also helped hundreds of nonprofits throughout the world advocate for their initiatives with the help of our passionate athletes. With partners such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Nothing But Nets, and 1,000 Days, our athletes have been able to positively impact important issues that affect millions of people throughout the globe.

A decade of AFH would not have been possible without our Founders, board of directors, incredible staff, member athletes, charities, partner organizations, and extensive network of other supporters. We thank you all for allowing us to do what we do best – educate, connect, and inspire athletes to give back to others. But our work is far from over. We have big plans for the next 10 years, and we hope you will help us make that vision a reality.

Please consider one of the following ways to support our work and help us celebrate a decade of inspiring athletes:

  • Donate now to ensure that AFH can deepen the impact of its programs
  • Share your favorite AFH moment on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram using #AFH10year

Thank you for making our mission possible. These last 10 years would not have been possible without your support.

Best,

Ivan Blumberg
CEO
Athletes for Hope