A We Play Too soccer clinic at Bellevue Elementary School
When she was in middle school, Richmonder and Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School senior Anushri Ramesh aspired to be a professional athlete.
The more sports Ramesh played, though, the more she noticed some things, like how her club softball team was once displaced from a practice facility for the baseball team, or how hard it was to round up a group of friends for a pickup game of basketball. Then, she learned that professional female athletes often earn less than their male counterparts.
“It struck me that female and male sports aren’t treated equally,” Ramesh says. “If I wanted to make a career in sports, I wouldn’t be able to live the life that male athletes are paid to have.”
Ramesh’s dream to bring equity to local youth sports inspired her to start We Play Too, an athlete-driven initiative that encourages girls and young people from underserved communities to enjoy club sports at a young age.
“I thought about how many girls played sports versus how many guys played sports,” she says. “Giving females more opportunities in sports [is] what it comes down to.”
In 2023, while a sophomore at Maggie Walker, Ramesh launched We Play Too as a school club. The extracurricular activity grew into its own organization, with high school athletes serving as clinic coaches for elementary students at Henrico County and Richmond public schools.
“We teach gifted students, so we often hear great ideas,” says Maggie Walker teacher Michael White, who served as the club’s advisor for its first two years. “But to actually turn an idea into a real charitable institution for the community takes a lot of hard work and effort.”
We Play Too now has chapters at Deep Run, Freeman, Godwin, Henrico and Tucker high schools and has spread beyond the region to schools in Queens, New York, and Tamil Nadu, India.
Ramesh estimates that more than 2,000 elementary students have participated in clinics locally, and more than 100 high schoolers have volunteered.
“We’ve made a lot of connections with the kids,” says Reagan Carroll, Maggie Walker student and soccer clinic director for the school’s chapter. “When I go to a school [for] the second or third time, they remember my name, and that’s special.”
A We Play Too soccer clinic at Bellevue Elementary School
As the organization has grown, so has its mission. Sports can lead to college scholarship opportunities, but financial barriers often prevent kids from participating in the first place. We Play Too’s free clinics help young athletes start their careers at no cost.
The organization began a scholarship program of its own this spring, raising enough money to pay for six months of karate lessons for 10-year-old Richmond resident Khalif Forehand. Moving forward, We Play Too will sponsor one scholar-athlete per semester.
Though Ramesh and Carroll will move on to college next year, the students see a future for the effort. “We want to bring We Play Too to college with us, and bring it across the country,” Carroll says. “And a lot of upcoming students will follow in our footsteps.”
