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by Alessandra Simeone

In October, Row New York welcomed Leonard Marthinus, a South African Fellow from the Sports Programming Initiative. With funding from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, Leonard and nine other fellows of the University of Western Cape’s Centre of Excellence for Sports Science and Development (ICESSD) were selected to be part of this international exchange grant dedicated to Sports for Social Change.

As part of the exchange, Leonard visited several nonprofits focused on sports-based youth development (including Row New York!) in an effort to exchange ideas and best practices for whole child empowerment through sports.  To complete this exchange, in spring 2015 our Executive Director, Amanda Kraus, will return the favor, visiting sports-based youth development programs in South Africa. Row New York was honored to host Leonard and have the chance to gain insight into his initiatives in South Africa.

Leonard’s nonprofit, the Inner Circle Youth Development Trust, operates out of the Western Cape of South Africa, a region that Leonard pointedly distinguishes from the rest of Cape Town. “The Western Cape is different in that its parliament is different from Cape Town proper. As such, resources are not allocated to the Western Cape equally.” Scant resources are no new concept for nonprofits in the US, but in South Africa there’s an added caveat: “South Africa relies almost solely on government funding, nonprofits included. When resources are not distributed appropriately to the Western Cape, there is even less left over for us [the nonprofits].” And though South Africa is “a sporting country,” the national investment for sports development programs has been slow to catch on. With obstacles mounting, a nonprofit in the Western Cape can foresee a difficult ascent. No matter for Leonard, though – these challenges are worth the climb.

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The Trust is an operation Leonard manages almost singlehandedly. With little outside funding, he operates with a business mindset and thus looks to alternative methods of “selling his qualities”. Through online postings of his work, schools and other organizations in the Western Cape hire Leonard to work with constituents in areas rife with gang violence and youth at risk. Similarly to a consultant, Leonard assesses the challenges at hand and leads his clients, whether youth or staff, to their own positive development. Leonard’s skill set spans a wide array of foci, including education, high-profile work to eradicate gangs, and conflict resolution. Though his assessments and workshops focus on sports, mainly soccer, Leonard’s favorite exercise for “learners” (as he calls all participants in his programs) is the group climb up Elephant’s Eye Mountain. Mirroring the work he must face to run his programs, Leonard’s mountain climb is paramount to foreseeing and surmounting challenges, no matter how difficult.

“There is no better teacher than a mountain, especially a difficult one!” With those words in mind, Leonard takes youth (and those associated) from all walks of life to climb Elephant’s Eye Mountain. At first, Leonard instructs participants only on the essentials for the mountain climb–water, hats, sunscreen, sturdy shoes, etc. As the trip progresses, he lets obstacles present themselves without prodding. “Whether frustration over a sunburn, confusion on which way to turn, or a water hog, problems within the group become obvious–without mention of gang violence, an addiction, or anything of the like.” It is here that Leonard can accurately assess communication skills, problem solving (or causing) abilities, and lack of vision of the group at hand. Using this analysis, he helps his learners determine their vision–to best support themselves and their students–going forward. “The mountain becomes a metaphor for the troubles faced by the learners. Ultimately they see where their vision for the future lies, or lack thereof, and learn how to attain it.” Foresight of a positive future is especially paramount to Leonard’s lessons, “Vision of your future is key: if you don’t know where your going, how do you know if you’ve even gotten there?”

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Elephant’s Eye Mountain, via blogs.beyond.com

Leonard’s expertise has garnered attention from the Western Cape’s provincial government, the University of Western Cape’s faculty, and other nonprofits in the area. Collaborating with each other, they reach a broader audience of at-risk youth and their care providers using techniques and methods focused on holistic, whole child empowerment. With lack of funding, collaboration becomes more essential, and is recognized as such for the betterment of youth involved, “Collaboration allows us to share resources and work together against the odds. Despite the hardships, it is really a labor of love for these youth.” For Leonard, the Sports through Social Change exchange was a unique opportunity to see the methods and practices of US non-profits; his goal is to implement new practices if possible and pass along his knowledge.

At Row New York, Leonard observed our youth and para-rowing programs and saw our students on the water, in academic settings, and even around the office. Though the NYC nonprofit landscape is different than the Western Cape, Leonard identified several important and positive aspects of our programs. “There are elements in place to make this program successful: you eliminate obstacles with transportation, there’s diverse academics, staff is well-trained and passionate, and most importantly, safety is priority with your learners.” Though Leonard’s challenges are different from ours here at Row New York, we share the vision of whole child empowerment and success despite all odds. Like Leonard, we won’t stop climbing.

Thank you to Leonard and the Sports for Social Change Program for this enlightening opportunity – we loved having you here!  And stay tuned for Amanda’s visit to South Africa!

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