The Utah Prep Kokua Foundation is our official non-profit organization designed to directly help student athletes from underprivileged backgrounds. Over the years, we have provided educational and athletic opportunities for kids from all over the world to work towards their dreams both on and off the court. Several of our student athletes come from the following situations:

 

• Third World Countries

• Underserved Communities

• Single Parent Homes

• Poverty

 

One common theme that we have observed over the years is that the majority of the kids from these disadvantaged backgrounds have a big HEART and a HUNGER to make a difference in their families lives.

 

Our Mission:

 

It’s no lie that we love basketball. Our teams compete with the best teams in the United States. Basketball is our identity. On top of that, our athletes are very talented. In a given year, we have 80-100 college coaches visit our practices to recruit... and the majority of our National Team holds Division 1 offers.

 

With that said, our mission is NOT to simply get the best players and go win games. We have a much bigger mission. To summarize our program mission in one statement, we are seeking to teach that “How you do one thing, is how you do everything.” 

 

We hold our athletes to some of the highest standards in the country. We care if a player makes their bed, makes eye contact, how they treat a stranger, and if they pick up a piece of trash.

 

We believe that if our players and coaches hold themselves to high standards in the little areas of life, those same standards of excellence will translate to the court, the classroom, the workplace, the family, and to society. 

 

In a society where short cuts, lifehacks, negativity, and laziness are normal, we teach our players to make excellence a habit. 

 

How you can help:

 

Our coaches, staff, and various generous individuals have reached deep into their resources to provide for our student athletes. In order to make our mission more sustainable in the long term, we are seeking contributions or in-kind services to cover the following needs:

 

• Medical Costs

• School Tuition

• Dental Services

• School Supplies

• Clothing/Winter Gear

• Extra Tutoring Services

• Injury Prevention/Rehab/Recovery

• Financial/Business Education for Athletes

• Temporary Host Families (Holidays, weekends, Summer, etc)

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If you would like to learn more please reach out. We would love to host you at one of our practices to meet our team.

 

Sincerely,

Shane Hayden, Justin Yamzon, Jason Mandaquit, Terry Tyson, Dylan Tatarka

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utahprepbasketballacademy@gmail.com