Three Black businessmen started the popular Chicago Football Classic 17 years ago and the event is still thriving.
Larry Huggins, Tim Rand and Everett Rand are the founders. With the event only a two months away, the Defender thought it would be a good idea to share some of the history.
Co-founder Larry Huggins remembers it vividly: “When we looked around the neighborhoods where we lived and had grown our companies, it was obvious that they all had one thing in common – many of Chicago’s youth in these south and west side commuities were full of promise, yet lacked a diverse range of viable outlets to harness their powerful potential,” Larry Huggins said in a news release.
“Sports was a natural and highly available outlet, while we considered educating future generations also vitally important,” he said. “At the same time, HBCU’s were looking to expand their outreach to young Blacks who might not have considered them as a first choice for higher education.”
Co-founder Everett Rand, shared his thoughts. “It was so simple, lookng back on it now,” he said. “In many ways, each of us, Larry, Tim and I, live by the personal belief that it is better to give than receive and further, we share Dr. King’s mission of committed service to promote,protect and uplift our youth,” said Rand. “In that moment, the idea for the Chicago Football Classic was born.”
Lastly, there is Tim Rand, who is a local entrepreneur, as well as a co-founder.
“The Chicago Football Classic is an extraordinary experience for people of all ages and as it has grown and successfully evolved over the years, it bceame clear by the tremendous response of the community that this is what we were born to do,” he said in a news release.
Today, the Chicago Football Classic is a non-for-profit, helping students attend and graduate from HBCU’s across the country.
The Chicago Football Classic has as its primary mission promoting the long-term success of African-American youth, to achieve academic, personal and professionally-oriented excellence, while attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities schools and throughout their future lives.
For more information on the Chicago Football Classic please call 773-874-8000, x.4024 or 773-734-1600. Go to
www.chicagofootballclassic.biz / Like them at “Chicago Football Classic” on Facebook and follow them on Twitter: @CHIFTBLCLASS.
Posted By: How May I Help You NC
Friday, July 11th 2014 at 1:54PM
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