The Reaching Your Dream Foundation is a collective of people who want to see the sport of racquetball thrive with new energy and growth. When we formed over a year ago, we knew it was important to engage racquetball with the guidance of a board that understood the need for open inclusion at the professional level. Initially, our group of board members was defined by several criteria. The first and foremost trait was passion for how the sport of racquetball can help develop the personal and professional growth of young, elite men and women athletes. And more importantly, promising players who do not have the resources to reach their racquetball dream. Furthermore, board members had to be open to branding and identifying the foundation with sports in general through our Fitness Forever messaging and programming. The incorporation of RYDF was formally granted by the State of California on April 1, 2014. We incorporated with seven board members including three officers: a president, a secretary and a treasurer. Our initial board members included two physicians, an accountant, a pharmacist, and three other members. As we grew, we knew we also needed a broad base of business and professional experience. There was also an understanding that race and gender diversity was key to understanding and our board is very reflective of this type of thinking. At the end of May 2014 we held our first annual meeting where we added two more members. At our second annual meeting in June 2015, we added another two members, including Jose Diaz, a well-known IRT player. At our meetings, we try to incorporate professional marketing training and communication workshops as often as opportunities allow. When we established our board’s bylaws, we set the limit of board of directors to 15 members. We currently are at 11. We plan to slowly expand to the maximum number based on finding people who not only share our collective passion but also add particular value towards guiding RYDF to sustainability. Recently, one of our board members, John Dalisky was asked to begin a dialogue with Eric Muller, the President of the International Racquetball Tour (IRT). During our first year of activity our main focus was on the younger players of the World Racquetball Tour (WRT), although we did sponsor rooms for players who also participated in IRT events. The advent of our new agreement with Rocky Carson, who is the current IRT #2 ranked professional, will provide a more comprehensive relationship with the IRT. We believe Rocky will make a powerful spokesperson for the Reaching Your Dream Foundation and help guide our younger players towards positive growth and opportunity. Our group is dedicated to being agile in our growth. We are committed to engaging racquetball with progressive ideas and support. As dedicated as our group is, we can’t do it alone. We will critically need support from you, the racquetball community. If you believe that professional racquetball can enrich the lives of young professionals in truly positive ways, stand with us. Consider a tax-deductible donation to the Reaching Your Dream Foundation. Help pave a foundation of growth in racquetball, while more importantly, building on the future of young professional racquetball players.
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