Beat the Streets Tampa Bay: Non-profit partners with USF wrestling coach for camp

TAMPA, Fla. - A Tampa Bay non-profit is partnering with the University of South Florida men's wrestling coach to bring children from underserved communities to a wrestling camp at Fivay High School.

Tampa youth wrestling camp expansion

What we know:

James Lawless, the head coach of USF's men's wrestling team, is hosting a wrestling camp this week for children of all ages around the Tampa Bay area, from his college wrestlers to children who are just learning their footing on the mat.

"I wanted to run a wrestling camp for kids of all different talent levels, but also with some kids that can't necessarily afford to go to wrestling camp outside the state or within the state," he said.

Lawless is partnering with Beat the Streets Tampa Bay, a non-profit dedicated to reaching children in underserved communities through the sport of wrestling. He says these opportunities are rare for a lot of children who may not otherwise have the physical or financial resources.

Lawless opened his camp up to some of the children who are part of Beat the Streets Tampa Bay.

"You live in a certain area, it's hard to get away from that," Lawless said. "And this kind of provides that opportunity for them to get away and learn from not just people in their community, but people outside the community."

The non-profit works with children from several different Boys and Girls Clubs and a community center in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.

"We're a small network of clubs that brings the sport of wrestling into underserved communities and places where they would not have any exposure to wrestling until high school," Beat the Streets Tampa Bay's Executive Director Patrick Spano said.

The Tampa non-profit is one of more than a dozen Beat the Streets chapters around the country. Beyond athletics, Beat the Streets Tampa Bay provides children of different ages with academic, social and emotional support during the school year and in the summer.

"It's getting out of the house, it's doing something," Spano said. "They make new friends, and it just opens them up to the whole community of wrestling."

Athletic mentorship impact

What they're saying:

"Wrestling teaches you to deal with adversity," Lawless said. "It teaches you that you have to not have that victim mindset and keep pushing forward through adversity."

Shaniyah Phillips, 16, is part of Beat the Streets and has been wrestling for about a year. She says one of her teachers recruited her to wrestle and since trying it, she hasn't looked back.

"I actually love it," Phillips said. "It helps me with everything. It helps me manage everything I've got going on."

As she prepares to graduate high school, she can't picture a future without wrestling.

"They're the greatest things that ever happened to me in my life," Phillips said. "They give me every opportunity I needed. Every opportunity I didn't think I was going to need actually," Phillips said.

What's next:

Beat the Streets Tampa Bay started about a year and half ago and is working to develop partnerships with more businesses and organizations in the community. The non-profit hopes to take on more children in the future.

You can find more information about getting involved here.