I came across SportForward recently as I was browsing CNN.com, and was inspired by how this organization enables people around the world to disable their limits through sport.  The following blog was written by SportForward’s Communications Director Raleigh Tillman.  I hope you enjoy!

“We have an obligation to the abilities we DO have, not the disability.” Jim Abbott

At SportForward, our mission is to use the power of sport to bring positive change to marginalized communities around the world. In more than 20 years of work, we have seen sport transform lives, promoting messages that empower, values that elevate, principles that educate, and ideals that build lasting peace. Sport can be an instrument of progress that changes minds and lives. We conduct sports camps, train coaches and teachers, and bring together local partners to leave a lasting impact in communities hungry for opportunities to use their abilities—and not be limited by their disabilities.

SportForward intentionally works in parts of the world where there is a lack of understanding and opportunity for many important people. Around the world in 2014, groups like these are “dis-abled” by being unable to access sports opportunities: 1) females in some countries who are kept from participation because of religious and cultural restrictions; 2) families displaced by wars and violent unrest who are forced into IDP/refugee camps; and 3) people living with disabilities who are often hidden away and prevented from participating in a full life. So whether a person is a female or a refugee or an amputee, there are many barriers that can keep them from living out of their abilities.

The reason we do what we do is for people like Ibrahim, a participant at one of our adaptive sports camps in Baghdad, Iraq. When he was eight years old, Ibrahim was touched by the violence in his country when an insurgent attack resulted in the loss of both his legs at the knee. Unlike children in the U.S. with access to far better medical care, Ibrahim did not receive any prosthetics. His wheelchair is far too large for him, making it difficult to maneuver down the street, and almost impossible to dribble a basketball. But Ibrahim doesn’t give up easily! While at our camp, he struggled to play basketball in his chair and finally decided to fling himself out onto the court. Diving towards the ball during one of the drills, he turned back to us with a cheeky grin, pointed at his stumps and yelled, “Coach! Moo mushkila! See?! Moo mushkila!” —“Coach! No problem!” And so Ibrahim showed us all what it looks like to disable your limits.

SportForward loves partnering with organizations like disABLE to bring awareness and change on behalf of these groups. We are proud to use the power of sport to help individuals and communities disable their limits and live their dreams.