The youth in the City of Roanoke deserve better and need better. The current structure for Youth Recreational Sports in The City of Roanoke is outdated, inefficient and ineffective. The Parks and Rec department means well but they don’t have the resources in order to make youth sports thrive by way of funding or proper manpower. The little accountability that did exist through the Youth Athletic Review Board is in danger of being removed by administrators that are looking for “efficiency” The system is set up in a way that does not lend itself to ownership of outcomes or accountability when there are problems that lead to a poor experience for the children that it is meant to serve. The only way this can be changed is if the city’s leadership is aware it’s an issue and decide to do something about it. Participation has dwindled for several years because of the system being poorly funded, poorly managed and poorly organized. We can do better and the only way we can fix this is by having a diversity of ideas come together and find bright spots in other communities that have been able to find success in recreational sports. With a robust youth sports program in our city we can do more to keep kids out of drugs, violence and other pitfalls that can be avoided with good solid mentorship and role models in addition to a feeling of belonging to something bigger than themselves. Now is the time to bring these issues to the attention of the city government in Roanoke and demand meaningful action. Please sign this petition asking for a full review of the current system and commitment to positive change.