Published March 28, 2019

By MAUREEN DOHERTY

NORTH READING — Sports Gear For Good, a locally grown non-profit begun by three young siblings in 2013, is collecting gently used sports gear for redistribution to kids both here and abroad.

The charity’s next equipment drive will be held at Maguire Field, 168 Chestnut St., on Sunday, March 31 from 12 p.m.-3 p.m. and again on Tuesday, April 2 from 6 p.m.-8 p.m.

Isabella, 16, Sophia, 14, and Cameron Parrett, 11, will be collecting usable youth soccer, baseball, softball, hockey and lacrosse equipment on both dates at the field.

It all began back in 2013 during a family vacation to Jamaica. When Isabella and her dad Sean had rented a car and were driving to the resort, she saw a group of kids playing soccer with a dried out coconut husk wrapped in twine. The image stuck with her. She commented to her father that it must hurt their bare feet and asked him why they wouldn’t just play with a ball.

THE PARRETT family, from left: Sophia, Isabella and Cameron, launched Sports Gear for Good after Isabella saw young kids in Jamaica playing soccer barefoot with a dried out coconut husk wrapped in twine. They are hosting an equipment drive March 31 and April 2 at Maguire Field. (Courtesy Photo)

“We discussed how fortunate we were to have the ability to afford equipment,” he recalled, while many children, whether in Jamaica or even back home, could not afford to do so.

“She asked if we could give some of the things we had to other kids who couldn’t afford it. With that, Sports Gear For Good was born,” Sean said.

When they returned home to North Reading, Isabella recruited her younger sister and brother and together they rounded up the sports equipment that they no longer needed and began to find charities that would take it.

“It became a seasonal ritual and even spread to family vacations. Isabella found out that baseball was big in the Dominican Republic and enlisted the help of family friends that we were traveling with us in 2016 to help collect and distribute baseball equipment,” he said.

Working together with Ryan, Nick and Cole Fabrizio, they bought five dozen Little League baseballs and also collected gloves, catchers’ equipment and bats to take with them. “They lugged several duffel bags from Logan Airport to Punta Cana and began to find families to donate (the gear) to,” he said.

During the past year, as word of mouth has spread and the donations have become larger, they have they have reached out to larger organizations such as the Red Sox and Bruins Foundations, in order to distribute sports gear to even more kids in need.

“The Dunbar family in North Reading has also been a big help in organizing and outreach is this spring’s local collection,” Sean said.

They have launched a website: sportsgearforgood.org as well an email address (sportsgearforgood@gmail.com).

To expand their reach they have partnered with many organizations. Among the organizations listed on their website is the Red Sox RBI Foundation which seeks to revive the sport of baseball in inner cities. On May 18, Sports Gear for Good will be heading to Fenway Park to drop off baseball and softball equipment.

In their partnership with the Boston Bruins Foundation, Sports Gear for Good is looking to find needy youth hockey players who could use some useable equipment, the website states.

On May 5 they will partner with families of current Bryant University Bulldogs baseball players to collect equipment after their game against Mount Saint Mary’s in Smithfield, R.I.

And, through the U.S. Soccer Federation’s PASSBACK program, they will donate soccer equipment both nationally and internationally.

The equipment they collect includes the following:

• baseball (gently used: batting helmets, cleats, gloves. bats. equipment bags, catchers’ equipment, batting gloves, and new baseballs);

• soccer (cleats, shin pads, balls, goalie gloves, new socks);

• lacrosse: (cleats, sticks,helmets, gloves, elbow and shoulder pads, equipment bags);

• hockey: (all helmets, all pads, skates, sticks and equipment bags): and

• softball: batting helmets, cleats, gloves, bats, equipment bags, catchers’ equipment and battling gloves.

They plan to add more sports soon so be sure to check back on their website. And don’t forget to look for some outgrown sports gear while doing your spring cleaning. It could literally mean the difference between playing soccer with a coconut husk or a real ball for a child in need of gear we often throw away without thinking twice about it.