The PCA Blog - Chicago

Intersport CEO Charlie Besser and Former NFL Player Isaiah Kacyvenski Headline PCA-Chicago Positive Impact Awards

03.12.2019


Chicago Chapter of Positive Coaching Alliance awards $1,000 scholarships to six high school student-athletes at the Annual Positive Impact Awards

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On March 12th at the Chicago Sports Museum, PCA-Chicago, a nonprofit organization with the mission to improve the culture of youth and high school sports so that all athletes have a positive, character-building experience, recognized high school student-athletes committed to the ideals of sportsmanship, a trio of coaches about to earn national accolades and two titans of business who have effectively leveraged prominent sports careers to make a positive impact on the business community through the companies they run. Chicago news anchor Rob Johnson served as this year’s emcee.


Out of 100 Chicago-area finalists, six student-athletes received $1,000 scholarships for best exemplifying PCA’s Triple-Impact Competitor Model:

Personal Mastery: Making oneself better 
Leadership: Making one's teammates better 
Honoring the Game: Making the game better


PCA also recognized former Seattle Seahawks linebacker Isaiah Kacyvenski with the Excellence in Sports Leadership Award for his accomplishments as the founder of Will Ventures and philanthropic support of multiple safety in youth sports initiatives. Charlie Besser, 
founder and CEO of Chicago-based Intersport, an award-winning, full-service marketing agency and powerhouse digital content studio, also took the stage as PCA-Chicago’s Triple-Impact Executive honoree.


In addition to the student-athlete awards and business awards, several Chicago-area coaches were named National Double-Goal Coach® Award Finalists, and three – Karen Judge (Glenbard West H.S.), Alecia Ivory (Girls in the Game) and Richard Ware (Chicago Hoop Squad) – were be named National Winners tonight. These coaches are known as a Double-Goal Coach, a coach who strives to win while pursuing the more important goal of teaching life lessons through sports.


“When it comes to recognizing excellence in sports leadership, we were extremely pleased to honor the combination of Isaiah and Charlie,”
 said Rob Dauphinais, Executive Director for PCA-Chicago.

“Charlie’s leadership and innovation has changed how brands tell stories through great sports marketing and digital content, and Isaiah’s story of perseverance was a thrill for everyone to hear, especially the high school student-athletes who were recognized.”

A special thanks to all our sponsors and donors for making this event possible! We are grateful for all their support along with all those who attended to help us celebrate this year’s winners and supporting Positive Coaching Alliance.

View all event photos