George Pocock Rowing Foundation launches a A Most Beautiful Thing Inclusion Fund

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

George Pocock Rowing Foundation launches a A Most Beautiful Thing Inclusion

Fund to Accelerate Expansion of the Sport of Rowing to Youth in Underserved

Communities

Along with the launch of the documentary film, A MOST BEAUTIFUL THING (narrated

by Common, written and directed by Olympian Mary Mazzio), based on the memoir by

Arshay Cooper, this new fund aims to support the work of Arshay Cooper, making the

sport more accessible and inclusive across America, extending opportunities to

underserved athletes and communities.

Fund seeking financial and community partners as well as corporate sponsors to bring

meaningful and lasting change.

SEATTLE – August 4, 2020 – The George Pocock Rowing Foundation (GPRF) today announced a new fund to promote accessibility and inclusion at rowing programs across the United States. The foundation aims to raise at least $1 million this year (and at least $3 million over three years) to get more kids on the water, fund education, scholarship, and mentorship programs, focused on non-traditional rowing communities and communities of color where youth face barriers to participation in the sport. Initial contributions, financial commitments and in kind offerings from prominent companies in the rowing community already have the Fund well on its way to its first $1,000,000 raised in this important effort.

Partnership with Arshay Cooper and A Most Beautiful Thing

The launch of the fund coincides with the premier of A Most Beautiful Thing, a

documentary that chronicles the first all-Black high school rowing team in the country,

available on xfinity on demand starting July 31. The film is based on the true story and

memoir of Arshay Cooper, recounting how a group of young men growing up on the

West Side of Chicago, while living through the daily battles of trauma, violence and

poverty, were able to come together through an unexpected, yet powerful opportunity.

The film is narrated by Grammy and Oscar-winning artist Common, executive produced

by NBA Hall of Famer Grant Hill, NBA All-Star Dwyane Wade, and Grammy-winning

producer 9th Wonder, and directed by award-winning filmmaker and Olympic rower,

Mary Mazzio.

“Rowing has the power to bring people together and create opportunities in a unique

way, as my teammates and I learned first-hand,” said Arshay Cooper. “My hope is for

the creation of this new fund to raise awareness, bring new communities into the sport,

and create opportunities to shape what the future of rowing can look like in America.

The George Pocock Rowing Foundation serves as the best platform to implement real

change, and I look forward to working with them on this important work.”

[The fund will be officially named A Most Beautiful Thing Inclusion Fund, its namesake

after the documentary, which will also contribute up to 50% of its profits to the fund.]

Inclusion Fund Overview

Through the new fund, the GPRF and Cooper will pursue their shared passion to spread

rowing to underserved communities on a national level, including programs that not only

aim to get more kids on the water, but also:

● Educate athletes, coaches and boathouse leaders across the country on the

importance of accessibility and inclusion within the sport.

● Raise awareness around rowing and the opportunities it affords student

athletes, particularly traditionally underserved and minority communities.

● Fund need-based scholarships and other services to remove barriers such as

team fees, equipment, transportation, language barriers and after-school support.

● Report demographic data on the fund’s programs and participating boathouses

to benchmark, track progress, and ensure effectiveness over time.

By working with school districts across the country through programs such as ErgEd,

the GPRF introduced over 25,000 new youth to rowing in 2019. Despite much success,

the GPRF also acknowledges that it has not done nearly enough to encourage

participation from more diverse and underserved communities.

“For generations, rowing has provided athletes with the opportunity to experience a

level of teamwork, achievement, belonging and opportunity that is unique across all

team sports,” said Jenn Gibbons, Executive Director of the George Pocock Rowing

Foundation. “Arshay’s enlightening and inspiring work has shown us that we can and

need to be doing more to extend that opportunity to a more diverse set of communities.

Our hope is that this fund will be the first of many steps to bring Arshay’s vision for the

future of our sport to life. Building on our success with Erg Ed, we will work with existing

clubs, emerging clubs and school districts, community organizations, and municipalities

across the country to get kids from underserved communities on the water. We are not

working for incremental change, but a revolution that will change how kids find, start and

keep rowing.”

Fund Leadership and Partners

The GPRF has established a new Inclusion Committee to lead the fundraising,

development and implementation of the new fund. The committee includes a diverse

group of leaders and corporate sponsors across the rowing and philanthropic

communities, including:

● Aquil Abdullah, Olympic rower

● David Banks, Olympic rower and former US Rowing board member

● John Bottum, President, George Pocock Rowing Foundation

● David Covin, COO, Fremont Group and President of the Board for Princeton

University Rowing Association and Oakland Strokes

● Anita DeFrantz, Olympic rower, member of the International Olympic Committee,

and twice Vice President of International Rowing Federation

● Jenn Gibbons, Executive Director, George Pocock Rowing Foundation

● William Hudson, Retired attorney, venture investor, lifelong rower and passionate

supporter of the sport as a change agent for youth

● Mary Mazzio, Olympic rower, director of A Most Beautiful Thing and principal of

50 EGGS Films

● Dan Walsh, Olympic rower and Partnership Liaison for HUDSON Boat Works

and Concept2

These leaders will support the GPRF’s efforts to raise the initial $1 million fund target,

the development and implementation of education and inclusion programs across the

country, as well as the search for other community, corporate, financial and

philanthropic partners to further the GPRF’s vision to allow youth of all ages and

backgrounds to experience the values of rowing in meaningful ways.

The Fund is coordinating its activities with the National Rowing Foundation and

USRowing to ensure that the entire rowing community is coming together, inspired by

Arshay’s story, to expand access to the sport. The GPRF has also partnered with US

National Team and current Olympic coach, Mike Teti, to help develop programs that not

only make the sport more accessible, but help youth realize the opportunities rowing

can create later in life. Teti will work with a team of rowing ambassadors, including

collegiate and Olympic athletes, through volunteering, coaching and leadership at

rowing programs across the country.

Teti shared, “I was first introduced to rowing in high school through my best friend,

whose dad was an Olympic rower. While my rowing career has taken me to the

pinnacle of the sport and around the world, it was the people and lessons learned along

that way that have made the journey most worthwhile. Rowing changed my life, and I

hope every kid across America has the opportunity to experience that. I volunteered to

help Arshay because I believe that if rowing becomes more diverse, everyone benefits,

and I want to be a part of making that happen.”

To learn more about the GPRF, A Most Beautiful Thing and how to support the new

fund, please visit: https://www.pocockfoundation.org/copy-of-a-most-beautiful-thing.

A Most Beautiful Thing trailer: https://vimeo.com/384763863

About Arshay Cooper: Arshay Cooper is a Benjamin Franklin award-winning author,

Golden Oar recipient for his contributions to the sport of rowing, motivational speaker,

and activist, particularly around issues of accessibility for low-income families. He has

dedicated his life to getting as many youth as possible to positively benefit from rowing.

About the George Pocock Rowing Foundation: The George Pocock Foundation

(GPRF) has been working since 1984 to get more kids on the water —kids who reflect

the full racial and economic diversity of the communities their boathouses serve.

George Pocock, master craftsman and boatbuilder, believed anyone who had the desire

to row should have the opportunity to participate in the sport and pursue excellence on

and off the water. Today, the George Pocock Rowing Foundation continues the work

George began, bringing Erg Ed to schools across the country, and scholarships to

boathouses across the pacific northwest.

For More Information:

Jenn Gibbons

George Pocock Rowing Foundation

Executive Director

Email: jenn@pocockfoundation.org

312-505-3568

Press Inquiries:

Nell Shuttleworth

Email: nell@pocockfoundation.org