Mentoring Juniors Kids Organization (MJKO) takes part in the 5th Annual RBC Sports Day in Canada
TORONTO, Nov. 26, 2014 /CNW/ - To mark this year's milestone RBC Sports Day in Canada, a national celebration of sport, MJKO is hosting a "Try a Sport" boxing event at the Harbourfront Community Centre Dance Studio at 627 Queens Quay West in Toronto.
"MJKO is honoured to be taking part in RBC Sports Day in Canada for the third year in a row," said Miranda Kamal, Executive Director. "This year's event is extra special as we pass the touch to one of our youth mentees, Michael Quach."
MJKO is also participating in RBC Sports Day as a Playing for Keeps Hub. These Hubs work with residents across the city to organize games in their neighbourhoods that engage newcomers, youth, and long-time residents. There are 17 Hubs, four of which have received "Try a Sport" grants from Toronto Foundation to host games on November 29.
Playing for Keeps was piloted through the 2012 Ontario Summer Games and named a key social legacy of the Games.
"Sport has the power to build community and get Canadians moving," said Elio Antunes, President and CEO of ParticipACTION, the national voice of physical activity and sport participation in Canada. "Fostering opportunities for sport at both local and national levels allows us to build a better and stronger society, while also becoming more physically active leading to healthier, more active lifestyles."
RBC Sports Day in Canada caps off a week of more than 1,800 local events and activities, such as community-wide festivals, try-it days, open houses, games, competitions, meet-and-greets, tournaments, fun runs, spectator events and pep rallies, and concludes with a special broadcast on CBC Television on November 29.
"Children need every opportunity to develop the confidence and skills they need to enable them to play and also recognizing there are lifelong lessons gained through sport," said Jane Broderick, Chief Brand and Communications Officer, RBC. "RBC Sports Day in Canada is part of our larger commitment to kids and youth through the RBC Believe in Kids Pledge, a five-year, $100 million promise to help one million kids with a wide range of programs."
"When sport is inclusive, fair and fun, Canadians and their respective communities are able to reap the benefits associated with a positive sport experience," said Karri Dawson, Director of True Sport Operations at the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport. "Good sport instills character in our kids, strengthens our communities and increases opportunities for personal excellence."
"It is wonderful to see the spirt of community-driven sport that RBC, ParticipACTION, and their partners have ignited across the country," said Rahul K. Bhardwaj, President & CEO, Toronto Foundation. "With the funding provided by the City of Toronto and Sport Alliance of Ontario for our "Try a Sport" grants, we will continue to support our P4K Hubs as they use play and games to create healthier, more active, and better connected communities through events such as RBC Sports Day."
About RBC Sports Day in Canada
RBC Sports Day in Canada, celebrated on Saturday, November 29, 2014, is a national celebration of the power of sport to build community and get Canadians moving. The official day caps off a week of more than 1,000 local events and includes a special broadcast on CBC Television.
RBC is the title sponsor of RBC Sports Day in Canada, which is presented by ParticipACTION, in partnership with CBC Television, ICI Radio-Canada Télé and True Sport, working in collaboration with national sporting organizations and their networks of coaches, athletes and sports enthusiasts across the country. RBC Sports Day in Canada is generously supported by Sport Canada and in BC through Healthy Families BC. For more information about RBC Sports Day in Canada, please visit: http://sportsday.cbc.ca
About MJKO
Our dream at MJKO is to create Community Champions by using the sport of non-contact boxing to get kids moving, thinking about healthy food choices, believing in impossible dreams and understanding the importance of volunteerism.
MJKO was founded by Miranda Kamal, who now serves as the executive director/program manager. As a survivor of sexual assault at 16, Kamal took up the sport boxing as part of her healing process. Later in life she entered the ring as a competitive boxer before sustaining a serious spine injury that was not boxing related. Unable to box again, Kamal decided to use everything she had learned to give back to the community. She established MJKO with the core principals of Train, Prepare, and Believe! MJKO became a registered charity in 2010 and has operated as a volunteer-run organization under Kamal's leadership.
In less than four years, MJKO has helped over 4500 young people between the ages 6 and 18 throughout Toronto. MJKO participants are from all ethnic backgrounds and often come from single parent families on fixed incomes. These are children and teens are that at a high risk of joining street gangs.
To register email: [email protected] (Limited spots available). Free t-shirts for the first 100 people to register and attend.
Image with caption: "Playing for Keeps (CNW Group/Playing for Keeps)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20141126_C1412_PHOTO_EN_8538.jpg
SOURCE: Playing for Keeps
or to speak to a spokesperson, please contact: Miranda Kamal, Executive Director, Mentoring Juniors Kids Organization (MJKO), 416-886-7390, [email protected]
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