The Metropolis Foundation supports a multitude of community and athletic programs. The following are a few examples of the types of programs that The Metropolis Foundation has and/or hopes to continue supporting.
Athletic and
Community Facilities
Youth Rugby
Learn Rugby Minnesota!
Select-Side Grants
Amateur Men's Rugby
The Spud Society
Catholic Charities
Other Programs
Athletic and Community Facilities
The Foundation provides athletic facilities for
community, youth and amateur
rugby use at Columbia Park in Northeast Minneapolis. These facilities
were built upon generally unusable lowland in the mid-1990's. Hundreds
of thousands of Dollars in grant funds, including state and federal
funds, were secured and used to create what is now the premier rugby
training and match facility in Minnesota and neighboring areas. Overlooking
the training and match facilities are a pavilion and a large playground
that was funded with grants obtained through the Foundation. The
Foundation pays to maintain and improve these facilities and is proud
to make them available for youth rugby and other athletic programs, as well
as community use.
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Youth Rugby
The Foundation, through its partnership with Metropolis RFC and its predecessors,
promotes the development of youth rugby by providing coaching, equipment and
facilities. Metropolis RFC and its alumni have provided volunteer coaches to
the vast majority of local High School Rugby programs. In addition, the Minneapolis
South and the Washburn/Northside boys & girls High School rugby teams make Columbia
Park their home.
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Learn Rugby Minnesota!
Learn
Rugby Minnesota is a youth rugby program headed by an alumnus of Metropolis
RFC. Learn Rugby Minnesota seeks to increase the percentage of rugby participants
by teaching the game to younger children. The program is designed to provide
knowledgeable, competent, organized rugby instruction to American children who
have never been exposed to the game of rugby. Learn Rugby Minnesota provides
the expertise and enthusiasm necessary to properly advance the game of rugby
and expand participation. The Foundation provides grants, facilities and other
support to Learn Rugby Minnesota. For more information, please visit www.learnrugbyminnesota.com.
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Select-side Grants
Periodically, the Foundation grants funds for use by individuals
involved with
amateur and youth rugby to participate in select-side (i.e., all-star)
rugby training and matches. While state and national select-side programs do provide
for some of the costs involved in participation, many of these programs still
place a significant amount of the financial burden upon the individuals who
are involved. In this regard, the Foundation endeavors to fill some of this
financial gap by providing funds to these selected individuals. By promoting rugby at a higher level for these individuals, we will improve
rugby in Minnesota as they bring their learned skills back home.
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Amateur Men's Rugby
Amateur rugby has begun to climb the ladder into the limelight over the recent
years in the United States. As more and more people are introduced to the sport
of rugby, the excitement, camaraderie and community has made believers
of them. The Foundation aims to continue to promote the sport of amateur rugby
and to foster its growth in Minnesota via the support and promotion of Minnesota's
premier club, the Metropolis Rugby Football Club (RFC). Metropolis RFC, in
addition to being the premier playing rugby side in Minnesota, has also been
the largest supplier of volunteer high school and youth coaches, and has worked
through efforts of the Foundation and its predecessors to build and maintain
the facilities at Columbia Park. For more information regarding Metropolis
RFC, please visit www.metropolisrugby.com.
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The Spud Society
The Foundation is partnered with Finnegan's Irish Amber, 100% of whose profits
go to help the working poor and at-risk youth via the Spud Society. The
Spud Society is a charitable 501(c)3 organization that funds programs
for the underprivileged
and working poor in the community. The Spud Society accepts no government
grants of any kind and is solely funded by the revenues from the
sale of Finnegan's
Irish Amber, brewed locally by Summit Brewing Company, and the generous
donations of its supporters. The Spud Society is also committed
to raising public awareness
to the issues of the homeless and working poor and has produced
a documentary, "Stories of the Working Poor," which is being used by
local shelter providers in
expanding awareness in our community on this issue. For more information regarding
the Spud Society, please visit www.spudsociety.com.
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Catholic Charities
In a partnership with Target Corporation, The Spud Society and Metropolis
RFC, the Foundation works to facilitate the delivery of goods from Target
store locations to Catholic Charities' locations in Minnesota.
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Other programs
Trys for Tots
Trys for Tots provides rugby curriculum and equipment to physical education programs in local school systems. The Foundation has worked to assist Trys for Tots and its organizers.
Academic Tutoring
In partnership with Metropolis RFC, the Foundation seeks to make academic tutoring available to youth, and in particular, to youth rugby athletes.
Northeast Minneapolis Food Shelf
The Foundation partners with Metropolis RFC to support the Northeast Minneapolis Foodshelf via fundraising, volunteering and donations.
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