Today we’d like to introduce you to Larry Curry.
Hi Larry, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My name is Larry Curry and I am the founder of a youth-based non-profit organization called Metro Sports Fieldhouse. Our mission at Metro Sports Fieldhouse is to “Provide resources that bridge the gaps that exist in youth/character development by being welcoming, promoting community engagement, providing unique collaborative opportunities for holistic development and helping young people expand their vision for their future”. We began providing our “FREE” unique programming in 2016. Our primary objective is to use sports and physical activity as a vehicle to introduce inner-city kids to new supplemental education topics and new career pathways. Our programming concepts and ideas come from me growing up in Oak Cliff, TX. Oak Cliff is full of talented, smart, beautiful people. I wanted to take all the things that I learned growing up there and identify new and creative ways to provide young people with resources, exposure to new things, and overall mentorship that will help them thrive and have a path forward to successful adulthood. Our “Sports & Career Literacy” program is a series of hybrid camps that allow kids to participate in soccer, basketball, yoga, and tennis, while also engaging in engineering activities, drone competitions, Minecraft coding, canvas/mural paintings, a variety of science projects, stock market games, financial literacy conversations with banking institutions, book fairs, goal-setting exercises, etc. We believe that the overall growth of young people is dependent on the health of the families and that it is our responsibility to help contribute to the overall well-being of the families that we serve. Through our “Metro Soles” initiative we have provide sneakers to over 1,500 kids and have facilitated back-to-school events and resource fairs annually that provide families with free food, supplies, and other essentials. Our community partnerships make a lot of this possible. In order to provide the greatest impact, we partner with several awesome local non-profits, for profit organizations, Arlington police department, the schools, and the city of Arlington to ensure that we are spreading the love. Our goal is to do our small part to make a difference and show love to youth from all over the Metroplex.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We have for surely faced challenges along our journey to positively impact the lives of young people. It has been a continuous battle to try consistently convince people that we are not a traditional sports organization. Including “Sports” in our name adds to the challenge to shake the stigma. Our core competency is sports and we truly believe in the positive impact that physical activity has on young people. Participation in physical activity helps reduce health issues in young people, build self-confidence, provides additional opportunities for mentors to emphasis life skill development, reduces participation in criminal activity, increases opportunities to attend college, and much more. However, we use the sports as a vehicle to introduce our participants to new things and provide hands-on immersive learning opportunities. Once we invite skeptical individuals out to witness our programming first hand, they usually see the vision and benefit of what we are trying to accomplish.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am proud of the support and growth that we have been able to achieve while maintaining a full-time job with Bell Helicopter and being present for my three children (Levi, Lyla, and Logan) and wife (Robin). We have increased our programming, youth participants, families served, partnerships, volunteerism, etc. The business acumen, experience, and knowledge that I have gained over my 10 years of employment with Bell Helicopter has been extremely beneficial to the success of Metro Sports Fieldhouse and has prepared us to expand our programming and increase our reach. We genuinely care about each individual that we serve and it is demonstrated by how we interact with children and families, the programming that we offer, and the relationships that we build. We have some really big projects on the way in 2022 and will continue to provide resources for the community.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
Some of my fondest memories as a child were all the camps that I was able to attend as a child. Growing up in a low-income house, my mom was always trying to find quality free programming that kept me engaged and active. Participating in these programs is where I developed a lot of my life skills. I learned how to develop independency, how to communicate with individuals from different backgrounds, teamwork, and much much more. I think that we need more quality programming with substance that is free for our kids and families.
Contact Info:
- Email: contactus@metrosportsfieldhouse.com
- Website: www.metrosportsfieldhouse.com
- Instagram: Metro Sports Fieldhouse
- Facebook: Metro Sports Fieldhouse 501c3 Youth Sports and Educational Organization
