Vernon Hills group donates sports equipment to schools in need

Without assistance from a Vernon Hills charitable group, Farragut Career Academy in Chicago might be a different place.

Farragut received sports equipment from The Sports Shed, started by Tina Sernett, that has helped keep the school's baseball and softball teams playing, and in doing so, is giving teens a chance to make better choices.

"Without The Sports Shed, our young boys would have chosen to go back into the streets," said Linda Ruiz, director of athletics and driver's education at Farragut. "The crime rate is high enough in the Little Village area that athletics is the only way to keep them away from that life. These boys love sports and genuinely want to make better choices in their lives."

The Sports Shed collects new or used sports equipment and donates the items to schools in need, such as those in the inner-city.

Sernett started the organization in 2009 after seeing her children's used sports equipment piling up in her garage. She didn't want to donate it to another organization. She wanted to make sure the items reached the children who need them.

"I thought, if we could put all of this stuff together, maybe we could outfit some teams," Sernett said. She started making calls to see if there was a need. "Of course there's a need."

The Sports Shed, a 501(c)3 charity, was born and Sernett started placing collection bins at locations such as Vernon Hills' Sullivan Center. The word spread that sports equipment was needed, and soon Boy Scout troops and even bar/bat mitzvah parties were collecting items. Local schools also held collection drives.

During a recent weekend, a Winnetka-based group held a "Make a Difference Day" collection for The Sports Shed, and gathered four truckloads of equipment.

Sernett's group typically seeks items such as basketballs, softballs, volleyballs, bats, cleats, protective gear and tennis rackets. The equipment is distributed to needy schools that submit wish lists.

Since its start, The Sports Shed has distributed more than 20,000 items to about 70 schools. The schools are vetted to ensure there's a need.

"We're very particular about where the equipment goes," Sernett said.

"We've literally saved those schools thousands of dollars or allowed them to do things they wouldn't be able to do otherwise," she added. "We've helped schools build or expand their programs."

Sernett said she loves sports and thinks they do a lot for kids in general.

"These kids need things to do other than be out on the streets or in gangs," she said. "They can learn teamwork and discipline and be physically active."

The mission has received help from Doug Hugpohl of LightSource Unlimited in the form of free storage space for collected items, and from North Chicago Community Bank, which donated money to help purchase athletic shoes for North Chicago High School. The Sports Shed also has launched a capital campaign to collect $60,000 2014 in hopes of adding more staff.

"There's just so much more that can be done. There's a lot more need," Sernett said. "There are just not enough hours in the day to get everything done."

For information about donating money to The Sports Shed, visit http://www.thesportsshed.org/.