As the holidays approach, and the season of gratitude dawns on us, there’s never been a better time to give back to your local grappling community. Check out these five amazing charitable organizations, and find out how you can help them use the gentle art as a tool for supporting those in need.
Compete for a cause! Tap Cancer Out puts on a series of tournaments that donates all competitor fees toward cancer fighting organizations such as Alex’s Lemonade Stand, the American Brain Tumor Association, the pediatric oncology division at the Johns Hopkins Cancer Center, and more. Athletes can even compete for free by fundraising for events.
How You Can Help:
Want to put your next vacation – not to mention a once-in-a-lifetime training opportunity – toward a worthwhile mission? Hero Academy is a Costa Rica-based nonprofit that offers jiu-jitsu lessons and other enrichment activities to local children free of charge.
The academy funds itself primarily through a series of beachside training retreats offered by top names in BJJ and MMA – including Tom DeBlass, Nick “Chewjitsu” Albin, Xande Ribeiro, and more – which are open to the public. Learn more about the remarkable story behind Hero Academy by reading our interview with retreat coordinator and head coach Ron Jarman.
How You Can Help:
Created by world class BJJ black belt and athlete mental health advocate Erin Herle, Submit the Stigma is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting mental health advocacy and awareness in combat sports communities. Learn more about this organization’s incredible mission by reading our interview with founder and executive director Erin Herle.
How You Can Help:
Made famous in the jiu-jitsu community in large part by its most well-known ambassador, movie star and competitive BJJ blue belt Tom Hardy, REORG is an organization dedicated to using the power of Brazilian jiu-jitsu to help veterans and first responders cope with PTSD, depression, and related mental health ailments.
How You Can Help:
Guardian Gym is a nonprofit organization dedicated to making jiu-jitsu accessible to low-income families. Through donations and partnerships with affiliated jiu-jitsu academies, this charity provides full scholarships for training to underprivileged youth all over the world.
How You Can Help:
