In 1995, the San Antonio Sports Foundation officially began its quest to provide access to sports for local youth. During the U.S. Olympic Festival-’93, the Sports Foundation was able to provide free tickets to underserved youth groups across the city. They realized afterward, however, that while the kids had been introduced to these sports, they had little access to them for financial reasons, lack of facilities and formal programs.
Born out of that realization was “Dreams for Youth”, a program founded by Stacey Johnson, Sports Foundation board member and Olympic fencer. In November of 1994, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded a large grant to the Sports Foundation allowing for the creation of Dreams for Youth in 1995. Due to its roots in Olympic sports, the program offered badminton, cycling, diving, fencing and gymnastics to inner-city youth. In its first year, 600 kids participated. A year later, there were 1,400 participants.
In 1996, Dreams for Youth got the boost it needed to cement it as a significant player in the city’s sports scene. The U.S. Olympic Committee designated San Antonio as one of four cities for its Community Olympic Development Program, leading to a $1 million grant from the USOC. Under the direction of Alma Striker, who led the foundation’s youth programs from 1998-2007, participation grew to more than 46,000 a year.
In the late 2000s, Dr. Robert Duron, San Antonio ISD superintendent, asked the Sports Foundation to help his inner-city students develop the skills that would eventually allow them to compete with bigger school districts in high school sports. Due to the focus of Dreams for Youth on only a few Olympic sports, the program’s reach and impact were limited. To serve the city’s underrepresented youth in the best possible way, the foundation realized it needed to move into school-based sports like volleyball, basketball and soccer. This led to the transition from Dreams for Youth to the current i play! afterschool program in 2008. While the name has changed, the mission and foundation laid by Dreams for Youth continue to guide San Antonio Sports in transforming young lives through the power of sport.