Easton Foundations funding supports archery, youth baseball, softball and cycling, as well as education and medical research.

2012 proved to be a popular year for Archery. From the movies to the real world, Archery was in the headlines.

The year started off strong with the phenomenal success of “The Hunger Games”, making an impact in the Archery world that few could have predicted. From small clubs and retailers to USA Archery, the buzz from this movie created a “coolness” around Archery that can have a lasting impact. Young girls, dressed as Katniss tried Archery for the first time and discovered what a great sport it is. Even younger girls found their inner Archery princess with the release of “Brave” and the heroics of yet another popular Disney Princess and female archer in Princess Merida.

Archery continued its move to the mainstream with TV programming like “Revolution” and “Arrow” appealing to girls, boys, men and women.
This Year of Archery was topped off by the Olympics in London with the US Men’s Archery team bringing home Silver and Archery pulling in top online ratings for NBC.

The Easton Foundations are inspired by the popularity of Archery this past year and plan to be part of its continued growth into 2013 and beyond. To support the growth of Archery over the past fiscal year the Foundation funded a variety of sources.

As part of its grass roots efforts the Foundation funded, through grants, various Archery Camps, Clubs, Neighborhood and Youth programs, Parks & Recreation facilities and Schools totaling $340,000 over the past year. In addition, the Foundation funded over $2.5M to existing organized Archery groups including, NASP (National Archery in the Schools Program), JOAD (Junior Olympic Archery Development), NFAAF(National Field Archery Association Foundation, USA Archery, and US Collegiate Archery Association.

The Foundation also supported Archery with over $2.2M in funding through its own programing, including support for its existing Archery centers and programs in Newberry, FL and Van Nuys, CA, and the development of new centers in Salt Lake City, UT and in a joint effort with the USOC (United States Olympic Committee), the Easton Archery Center of Excellence at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA. The Foundation also runs Archery programs throughout the US including the OAS (Olympic Archery in Schools) program and, along with the USAA and World Archery, the World Cup (this year as an Olympic qualifier hosted in Ogden, UT).

While Archery is the focus of the Easton Foundations, our mission also includes giving back (in 2012 over $2.5M) to all the sports that Jim Easton and the Easton Companies have been a part of, including Baseball, Softball, Cycling and Ice Hockey, as well as giving back to the community in general.

The Easton Foundations continues to be excited about the successes of the past but even more enthusiastic about the promise for the future for Archery and for all.

By: Caren Sawyer