If I go, we go...

After a productive, intense and very, very fun Synack SKO in Nashville, it's back to a hectic week across multiple personal projects.

For those that know me, the topics of basketball, boxing and sport in general will have bored you incessantly?at some point!?

Over the last 5 years, I've been fortunate to work across two uplifting and positive community-focused sports projects.?

At Mannings Gym we are building a Boxing Club built on integrity, positivity and hard graft. Led by Anthony Manning, we train up-and-coming amateur and professional boxers.?

We also work with Birmingham Children's Trust to provide Boxing provisions. These are aimed at vulnerable?children?that may be excluded from mainstream education, have involvement in crime or may have spent time in the custodial system.? Our objective is to help them find a path to making positive improvements that enable them to have hope, dreams and contribute positively to society.

Kings Heath Community Basketball started in Kings Heath Park during Covid. After realising I would now be one of many?working from home?5 days a week during (then post) lockdown, I knew I needed (new) positive routines.?

With my sparring?partner?and long time friend?David Maboya-Browne, we?started heading to the local Basketball court every morning at 0700. Inevitably we missed many, but we were there more often?than not... then more people came, we started to run weekly scrimmages and?started gathering a very powerful?force; momentum.?

Roll forward 5 years and the Kings Heath Clangers are completing?their?maiden season in the West Midlands Basketball League (W9/L1), are currently 2nd in Division 3 and have reached the semi-final of the Babe Clay Rosebowl Cup! We are also working towards having our first Juniors Team next season.

Through collaborating with local people like minded Graffiti?artist Panda, the young creatives that play for our team and the hard working professionals?like Max Thomas, Mason Poore, Roy Balis?& Grant Klienfelter?that support me EVERY SINGLE DAY, we'll be bringing more service offerings to Birmingham?Children's Trust through basketball, creative projects and much, much more!

Anthony has built a home for Mannings, and I'm now working on finding Kings Heath Community Basketball a permanent?home.?

By creating a commercial entity to house all these projects, I'm aiming to build something sustainable?for the long term. Handouts and the charitable?model will not suffice. There is now a commercially viable route to being 100% self-sustaining so we can offer stability to these organisations and the communities we try to serve.?

If you would?like to help or get involved in any way there are?investment opportunities (can't promise a significant return, just a fair one), advice is greatly?received and any kind of support is always welcome!