Radford, Schulz launch All Access Athletics to help local kids play sports

BY SHAWN LOUGHLIN

This May, the work of the All Access Athletics Association will begin in earnest with its first charitable intake and a slate of events through the remainder of the year. The brainchild of Londesborough’s Braden Radford and his childhood friend Wolfgang Schulz, the registered non-profit organization, founded last year, aims to aid Huron-Perth children and families in their ability to play sports in a way that other similar charities do not.

 

The association is “dedicated to supporting minor sport athletes in breaking down financial barriers and providing access to minor sports in the Huron and Perth County areas,” according to the association’s website.

 

“The organization was started by four former minor athletes and close friends when they recognized that children in rural communities face significant financial barriers to being able to participate in minor sport,” the website continues. “We aim to support minor sport athletes by funding scholarships for sport registration, equipment and travel expenses. Through fundraising events and with the support of our community partners, we aim to create an inclusive sports environment where all young children can grow, compete and thrive.”

 

Speaking to The Citizen, Radford, a 21-year-old Londesborough resident who’s now in his fourth year at Brock University studying Sports Management, said that he and Schulz had discussed the creation of a sports-focused charity early last year and Radford was instantly attracted to the idea. He said he had always hoped to give back to his community in some way and this sounded like the perfect avenue, folding in his sports-oriented education as well.

 

Aside from their sheer motivation to help the children of their home community, there were two things that they saw as limitations in the area that motivated the pair further. First, it was what they saw as rural Ontario often being overlooked when it comes to sports opportunities and the ability to support them and keep them alive, pointing to dwindling hockey registration numbers in recent years. 

 

Second was what they saw as limitations to other similar charities, such as Canadian Tire’s Jumpstart, for example, which has a $500 limit per family, per year for its assistance. With the price of hockey registration, equipment and travel in the 2020s, and families that may have more than one child wanting to play, Radford said that $500 would not make enough of an impact for that family.

 

While he’s quick to defend Jumpstart and other similar charities, he just felt that something more could be done by limiting focus on a handful of families, depending on the funding available, and really helping them to afford the ability to play minor sports, perhaps lifting them into a better situation and clearing the way for other families to apply the following year, if possible. 

 

He said that if the association had, say, $10,000 to distribute during an intake, he’d rather give five families $2,000 each than give 20 families $500 each, creating a situation in which the association could have a substantial impact on the families’ lives and their ability to enrol their children in sports.

 

The group eventually landed on a charitable venture (they are registered as a non-profit, but hope to become a full-fledged charity in the long-term) after Radford and Schulz took part in a five-kilometre run for charity. Radford lost his father to cancer when he was quite young, so he’s always been looking for ways to honour him and keep his legacy alive, so the association made perfect sense.

 

It makes sense then that the organization’s first fundraising event will be the Level the Field 5-K at the Central Huron Community Complex on Sunday, June 14. That, Radford hopes, will be just the first of many events aimed at not just raising funds for the association, but to also raise its profile and give them the chance to herald all the good work they can be doing in the community. They are also in the midst of planning a ball hockey tournament for late August in a location that has yet to be determined, but Radford hopes that announcement will be made in the coming weeks.

 

Because it’s still relatively early in the association’s life, Radford says not much has been done in the way of fundraising just yet, but that the option is available online at all-access-athletics.com and that applications for the first intake will open on May 1. 
The plan, Radford said, is to have two annual application periods, essentially, for summer and winter sports registration periods. This year’s application period from May to August will aid locals for the registration periods for sports in the summer of 2027, with the winter application period running from November to February of 2027 for the following winter’s activities.

 

Radford acknowledges that, like the work of many charities and service clubs, he and his team will be asking the community for support so the association can then turn around and support that same community, but he hopes locals will see the benefits to the association and its dream to help local children. Furthermore, in addition to donations, the association is also in need of event volunteers for when the time comes. Ways to donate and to volunteer, as well as much more information about the association, can be found on its website: all-access-athletics.com.