Porteous Sports 2024

The Porteous Sports program, funded by the Porteous Family Foundation through the Catholic Education Foundation, supports two schools annually by providing much-needed sports and playground equipment. This past school year, St. Paul Catholic Dual Language Academy, in mid-city Los Angeles, and Our Lady of the Rosary School, in Paramount, were the beneficiaries.

Schools selected for the program work within a budget to create a customized wish list for items that benefit their students during recess, physical education classes and team sports. Items like soccer balls, goals and even a ping pong table were presented to the schools, bringing joy to students across all grade levels.

Ivan, a sixth-grade student at Our Lady of the Rosary, observed how active his classmates were on their first day with the new equipment.

“This is the most active I've seen the school play since I've been going to school here,” said Ivan. “This was the first time I had ever played soccer.”

Allison, a seventh-grade student at Our Lady of the Rosary, was very excited about the new basketballs. She plays on the school’s team and shared how they didn’t have their own basketballs in the past. She also noted that more students were immediately engaged with the new equipment.

“It makes me feel really good seeing everybody play now, and not just walk around at recess,” said Allison. “Thank you Porteous Sports and CEF for the new equipment! We really appreciate it.”

Dr. Linda Guzman is the principal at St. Paul Catholic Dual Language Academy, and when she placed her order, she made sure that the students received a ping pong table.

“They're excited about the ping pong table. It's something new. This is going to teach them collaboration, camaraderie, playing nicely and taking turns. So we're super excited,” said Dr. Guzman. “It allows them to learn the rules, take turns and be polite and kind, while learning a different sport.”

As for the rest of the new equipment, Dr. Guzman is very appreciative and points out that the older equipment had seen better days. The new playground gear and balls were very well received.

“Our boys love to play football and soccer and basketball. The balls are already worn out. I had a student say, ‘These balls have grip!’ So there was a real need. It's exciting for them to have some new material that they'll take care of and play with,” said Dr. Guzman. “Thank you to CEF. They're always looking out for all students’ needs. I truly believe that their purpose is the whole child, and part of it is for them to play, to enjoy and to have the resources and materials that otherwise we wouldn't be able to have.”

Thanks to the generosity of the Porteous Family Foundation, this program continues to impact children’s physical, cognitive and social development by building confidence, resilience, interaction and social skills through the importance of “Play.”