Lisa Walker, Executive Director (Newman’s Own Foundation), Kate Duhamel (Right To Play USA Board Chair), Johann Olav Koss (Right To Play Founder and CEO) and Lindsay Hower (Right To Play USA National Director) 

Dhani Jones (former NFL linebacker) and Johann Olav Koss pose for a picture at an event in New York City where Newman's Own Foundation awarded Right To Play with the $250,000 challenge grant.

Summer Sanders (Athlete Ambassador and Olympic gold medalist in swimming) and Lindsay Hower (Right To Play USA National Director) pose for a photo with the Goldrings who have become investors of the 1 million kids by 2012 challenge.

Since its inception, Right To Play has set the benchmark goal of one day reaching one million children through regular, weekly sport and play programming. Currently engaging more than 700,000 children across 20 countries in regular activities, our goal is to reach 1 Million Kids in 2012, but we can’t do it alone.

Now, thanks to a generous $250,000 challenge grant awarded to Right To Play by the Newman’s Own Foundation, the 1 Million Kids goal is within reach. The challenge is this: help us match every dollar donated by Newman’s Own to collectively raise the $500,000 by March 31, 2012.

The 1 Million Kids campaign is an opportunity for new U.S.-based individual donors to team-up with the world’s leading Sport for Development organization to help improve the lives of children around the world.

As an investor in 1 Million Kids you will:

1) Become an integral part of a movement to bring the transformative power of sport and play to one million children worldwide on a weekly basis.

2) Join a team that invests in children’s health; promotes peaceful conflict resolution; increases school attendance rates; decreases the number of child soldiers in war-torn regions; and amplifies disease prevention in high-risk communities.

3) Contribute to an experiential learning curriculum that is child-centric and makes sport and play-based learning key components of children’s public health around the world.

Eligible investors are individuals and families who currently support Right To Play at $10,000, as well as lapsed and prospective major donors making gifts in the range of $10,000 to $100,000.

If you would like to invest in 1 Million Kids, please click here

The opportunity to help 1 Million Kids access Right To Play programming starts today. With your generous help, we hope to reach that goal by March 31, 2012. To invest or to learn more, please contact Lindsay Hower, National Director of Right To Play’s U.S. office.