La Paz is a small town in the Baja Peninsula of Mexico (ok - so we know that there is also a La Paz which is the capital city of Bolivia but stick with us...) It is close to the well-known Cabo San Lucas resort (Sammy Hagar of Van Halen fame has a nightclub and a home there).

La Paz has its share of disadvantaged kids and we are happy to be involved with a local charity in the La Paz/Cabo San Lucas area which sponsors kid's football clubs in local schools. The kids get breakfast provided for them as well as team strips and are looked after by a group of dedicated volunteers. All profits from sales of our music will go to these kids. Here's some news and contact details if you are interested in helping out this excellent program.

In February 2010 we played two benefits in Scotland for the charity. Friday 26th saw us at The Ark in Edinburgh and with the help of Imported Instruments we raised £507 (about $800 which is 4 football teams sponsored). We thought this was an outstanding amount but then on the 27th we played a private function for Forth Valley Motor Cycle Club and they raised another £500! So that weekend alone raised us enough to sponsor 8 football teams.

A HUGE thank you goes out to everyone who helped out - too numerous to mention by name but you all know who you are.

You can also donate here and make a difference!

The first official season of the their soccer league ended in December, with the new season kicking off in February. With the support of sponsors from Mexico, the U.S., England, Scotland, and South Africa, GART/Mundo Star has gone from 64 soccer teams to a staggering 96, a total of 700 kids, equally split between San José and Cabo. Additionally, the state government has just given the go-ahead for construction of a food kitchen in both Cabo and San José, where 400 children from the designated schools will be given a free, healthy breakfast each school day.

In a non-stop effort to continue raising funds and awareness, GART, under the umbrella of another major non-profit organization, Los Cabos Children´s Foundation, will host several events in the upcoming months. The first, a free concert on March 7th in San José, will feature Al Jardine, former Beach Boy, along with three other local groups. With the primary goal of the concert being to inform the public of the services provided by Los Cabos Children´s Foundation´s sister charities, all groups will be on hand with information. On April 18th and 19th, taking place at the stadiums in San José and Cabo, a major concert will take place. Free to the general public, with raffle tickets, shirts, and food for sale on the premises, this ten-hour festival will boast some big-name performers from both Mexico and the U.S. Funds raised through sales here will go toward the food programs in each city.

Fulfilling the educational goal of GART´s mission, students participating in the food and sports programs will be the work force in the new anti-graffiti campaign that Los Cabos so desperately needs. The mayor, local delegates, and the Los Cabos Hotel Association are all on board with this project as well. Although officially beginning in April, the campaign began on a small scale in January with the vicinity of Hotel Los Milagros chosen as the starting point.

Although GART focuses primarily on the needy children in La Paz and Los Cabos, recent donations were also made to children in Todos Santos and even up north in Baja California. Through GART´s U.S. equivalent, Youth Education Sports (YES), students at Capital Christian High School, in Sacramento, collected stuffed animals, sports cards, and children´s clothing, filling 12 pallets of goods to be distributed to the kids.

GART/Mundo Star is always looking for soccer coaches and team sponsors. A $2,000 peso donation covers an entire team of seven boys or girls (ages 6-12), gives them jerseys and a team banner, both proudly displaying the sponsor´s business name, plus coaching, referees, equipment, and tournaments. For more information, contact Mundo Star´s Steve Mills at millss7@hotmail.com. "

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History of the Charity

The Children of La Paz Sports & Education Project was initially established by a small group of American softball umpires overwhelmed by the interest of Baja’s young people to play softball.  There was an immediate response as people of every age and background from several American states joined with the Mexican community to provide sports equipment and education to needy children of Baja Sur.  A brief summary of our ongoing efforts and accomplishments follows.

In 1989 the first co-ed slow pitch tournament was held in La Paz featuring ten American teams— most of the locals had never seen softball played before!  Many of today's adult league players got their start through our original programs. 

In October 2002 six women athletes from the World Professional Softball League joined us for clinics in La Paz, the first week-long series of Fast Pitch Clinics International Girls (age 12-18) Fast Pitch Softball in Mexico.  With the help of government agencies, a softball and Little League Baseball complex was built in La Paz.

In 2004 the program attained Mexican Civil Association status (the equivalent of a U.S. 5013c Corporation) under the legal name ASOCIACION DE BENEFICENCIA RAYMUNDO THOMAS, A.C. 
In March Nike gave its sponsorship along with a full size container of sports equipment sent to us in La Paz!  A group of professional coaches flew down to conduct a week of clinics in six different sports, and tennis for girls was introduced.

2005 was a banner year--the program worked along with government authorities to establish sports in the schools and kids age 8-16 began playing a variety of sports including a soccer program for girls 8-16.  The first Annual Special Olympics was held in Todos Santos with 150 participants, and new Little Leagues were formed in five small towns.

In March 2006 the Second Annual Special Olympics was held in La Paz with over five hundred participants.  In June the Second Annual Professional Coaches Clinic in La Paz was held with fourteen professional American coaches in seven sports working with more than a thousand kids and their teachers.

In 2007 a daily school breakfast program was started up feeding 295 elementary students.  Competitive sports programs expanded to include over 1,600 kids.  Donations of used equipment continued to arrive from the U.S.
 
2008 brought new opportunities in the rapidly expanding Los Cabos area where we quickly added eight elementary schools to our sports program with generous local support. A major event topped off the year with a tournament played on Astro Turf in Cabo’s brand new soccer stadium for over four hundred boys and girls. 

A 2009 benefit dinner was held to raise additional funds for Los Cabos programs and projects, and two FREE community music and art events were held during the summer to bring the community together and raise awareness of the program.  As exciting as the past history of this program has been, the future looks even better.  In a very short time, 96 sponsored teams have been created, a total of seven hundred kids in Los Cabos.  We continue to expand in La Paz with 19 new teams, two hundred kids playing for the first time.  The wife of the Governor has committed to build two kitchens in Los Cabos to help us jump start the breakfast programs.  We still receive and distribute donations from the U.S. throughout the Baja peninsula... and plans are underway to start a 25 team kindergarten league in San Jose this September!

It is a privilege to be part of this amazing story, and to recognize the many generous friends whose efforts and contributions have changed our communities for the better and impacted so many lives.  It is quite remarkable that such a relationship between two countries with language and cultural differences can transcend normal boundaries, building a bond that continues to be productive through the years.

You can also donate here!