A local foundation is working to help disadvantaged children across Knoxville. 

The Emerald Youth Foundation began in the Knoxville community in the late 1980s as a summer outreach ministry. It has since grown into a prominent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization serving the local youth and their families within Knoxville.

The Emerald Youth Foundation functions through connections to local churches and faith-based organizations to fulfill a ministry-driven mission to provide support to Knoxville youth through after school support, sports programs, high school support and general outreach.

Molly Duncan, junior in communication studies, volunteered with the Emerald Youth Foundation’s swim team and Learn-to-Swim initiative during her freshman year.

“Seeing kids who live in a compromised situation be able to learn a new skill, be around positive influences and finally have fun is empowering to me and the other volunteers,” Duncan said.

Duncan worked with the swim team for two years, providing after-school care and support for students from local schools. The students ranged from five years old to 17.

Duncan recalls both personal improvement and fellowship among the students.

“There was a little boy who always struggled to make it across the pool and would get frustrated by this. By the end of the season, he finally made it across the pool and the entire group was beyond proud of him,” Duncan said.

Students living in Fort Sanders may be familiar with the Emerald Youth Foundation’s local athletic complex. On most weekends, the soccer fields are busy with children who are part of the foundation’s soccer program.

According to the Emerald Youth Foundation website, the organization offers nine sports programs. These include baseball, performance training, wrestling, lacrosse and others. The programs are designed to develop the physical fitness of the local youth to improve their health and sense of belonging.

The Emerald Youth Foundation benefits from the federally funded AmeriCorps program, whose members serve in part-time positions with the organization. It also has positions open to workers outside of AmeriCorps.

Sarah Marlow, junior in political science, is part of this program and has seen firsthand its benefits to students and volunteers.

“Working at the Emerald Youth Foundation has given me an opportunity to not only give back to Knoxville, but to impact our future leaders,” Marlow said.

Marlow serves in Emerald Youth’s after-school program, where she works with students every day after classes. Marlow describes the experience as positive and encouraging to not only the students but to herself.

“Working somewhere that doesn’t feel like working is a true gift, and I can’t wait to see the great things that the scholars of inner-city Knoxville do,” Marlow said.

The Emerald Youth Foundation also engages in and supports research regarding Knoxville’s gaps and room for improvement. The gaps include lack of faith development, lower academic achievement, lack of mentorship and a lack of engagement in recreational sports.

In 2013, the foundation released a report detailing these gaps in relation to youth services in Knoxville’s economically disadvantaged neighborhoods. The foundation is working to help mitigate some of them.

The programs and initiatives created by the Emerald Youth Foundation are carried out by volunteers and staff of the foundation. It serves over 2,200 young people in Knoxville every year and is supported by members of the Knoxville community and other donors.