About Us
Financial Info
Building Communities
Get Involved
The SARC

About Us

Who is Think Detroit PAL?

Think Detroit PAL is a non-profit organization positively impacting the lives of nearly 12,000 children each year through athletic, academic and leadership development programs. Formed through a merger of Think Detroit and the Detroit Police Athletic League in 2006, Think Detroit PAL has roots dating back to 1970.

Think Detroit PAL empowers the community by training volunteer coaches and by creating safe places for kids to play. Each year, Think Detroit PAL teaches more than 1,400 caring community members how to be encouraging and effective mentors. Think Detroit PAL has also renovated numerous parks and recreation centers across the city including Maheras-Gentry Park and St. Hedwig Park, transforming them into some of the city’s premier athletic facilities.

Programs

Think Detroit PAL’s largest programmatic focus is youth sport leagues. The organization runs traditional recreation programming in a variety of sports including baseball, softball, track & field, soccer, football, cheerleading, basketball and a volleyball league exclusively for girls.

In addition to its extensive recreational sport leagues, Think Detroit PAL also fields several travel teams throughout the year in five sports.Think Detroit PAL’s travel teams are made up of the strongest on-field leaders. These players and others also participate in the academic and leadership development programming of the D. Duane Hurtt Student Athlete Resource Center.

Awards

Financial Info

Where Your Donation Goes

At Think Detroit PAL, we know our donors are all about the kids. That’s why we make sure the highest percentage possible of every donated dollar goes towards our athletic and academic programs. Whether a donation comes from an individual, a corporate partner or a foundation, we value every dollar that is contributed to help make Detroit a great place to be a kid and raise a family.

Currently 78 cents of every dollar donated to Think Detroit PAL goes directly to program services!

Supporting Think Detroit PAL

The majority of donations to Think Detroit PAL come from proactive individuals who care deeply about the future of Detroit’s children. In addition, Think Detroit PAL benefits greatly from its corporate partners and supporting foundations. To learn more about donating to Think Detroit PAL, please visit our website thinkdetroitpal.org.

Building Communities

Community Development:

Examples of Think Detroit PAL facility improvement projects include:

• $1 million renovation of five baseball and softball diamonds at Maheras-Gentry Park.
• Renovation of two baseball diamonds at St. Hedwig Park to create a premier baseball facility for use of TDP teams and other community leagues.
• $20,000 in field improvements to 11 baseball and softball diamonds at Jayne Playfield.

Community Partherships:

Facilities maintained by Think Detroit PAL, such as Historic Ft. Wayne and Peterson Playground, as well as other host sites for Think Detroit PAL leagues.

Community Engagement:

Detroit Public Schools, charter schools, churches, youth centers and other community organizations with Think Detroit PAL athletic teams.

Get Involved

Why Volunteer

Athletic participation in programs like those offered by Think Detroit PAL provide a multitude of proven benefits that promote a child’s well being. Compared to doing nothing at all, having an effective out-of-school activity results in 27% more youth with better grades and 37% more youth with higher achievement test scores!

Think Detroit PAL provides more than 3,000 urban girls with an opportunity to gain self-confidence and develop leadership skills though participation in organized sports each year.

Think Detroit PAL partners with the Skillman Foundation’s Good Neighborhood Initiative to increase participation in extra-curricular programming among children in high-risk neighborhoods. Think Detroit PAL offers unique programming opportunities to residents of Osborn, Brightmoor, Cody/Rouge and Southwest Detroit neighborhoods and makes a concentrated effort to improve fields and hold events in those areas.

Be a Volunteer!

As a volunteer with Think Detroit PAL you can make a tangible difference in the lives of Detroit’s youth. Our volunteer coaches use sports as an opportunity to create character building opportunities on and off the field.

All Think Detroit PAL volunteers who work with our kids must pass a background check and complete our IMPACT training program which gives caring community members the tools needed to be great mentors. Our volunteers amass more than 200,000 hours of working directly with children each year! That is a lot of time spent keeping Detroit kids on the right path.

If you are interested in positively impacting your community by volunteering with Think Detroit PAL, please call our office at (313) 833-1600

The SARC

Building character and forging leaders

After the sudden passing of D. Duane Hurtt, Think Detroit PAL’s first chief operating officer in 2007, the organization dedicated the D. Duane Hurtt Student Athlete Resource Center (SARC). SARC programming focuses on building leaders on and off the field.

Academic and Leadership Training

• Leadership and academic development summer day camps encourage students to define their goals give students the tools to reach them
• Think Detroit PAL staff members take groups of student-athletes to visit college campuses across the Midwest
• Workshops, clinics and one-on-one counseling prepare student athletes for college by helping them navigate the recruiting and admissions process

Travel Teams

Athletes with advanced skills in baseball, softball, track and field, soccer, and volleyball may be selected for a position on TDP Elite travel teams. These athletes compete across the nation against the best athletes at their age level. By participating in tournament play, children have the chance to make new friends, travel the country and gain valuable learning experiences

While improving their technical skills, these athletes gain confidence in their ability to lead and work as a team. TDP Elite student-athletes are recruited by college coaches and serve as role models for younger athletes.