Sports Authority Liquidation Impacts Charity In Colorado

By Jeff Todd

DENVER (CBS4)- The liquidation of Sports Authority is having unintended consequences on charities throughout the country, but its biggest impact is in Colorado.

The National Sports Center for the Disabled has held a partnership with sports authority since 2002 and even before that with Gart Brothers.

"Fundraising is really critical in order to provide these therapeutic recreation lessons," said NSCD CEO Becky Zimmerman.

The NSCD offers 15 sports and usually has 3,500 participants each year.

"They participate with us in about 20,000 therapeutic recreation lessons," Zimmerman said. "It's definitely skiing but it's also kayaking, rock climbing, we have a therapeutic horse riding center. We're gearing up for white water river rafting so it's a year round program that gets people out."

Between being the title sponsor of the golf tournament and other donations, along with volunteers, the Sports Authority gave about $500,000 to the NSCD.

Now Zimmerman and her non-profit are hoping another funding source will step up.

"It really opens up opportunity for other sponsorships whether that's sporting goods or other businesses that want to connect to us, want to provide volunteer opportunities for their employees, support a great cause and help a lot of people."

The sports retailer, based in Englewood, had only planned to close about 140 stores, but in a court document this week it outlined plans to shutter all of them.

Jeff Todd joined the CBS4 team in 2011 covering the Western Slope in the Mountain Newsroom. Since 2015 he's been working across the Front Range in the Denver Headquarters. Follow him on Twitter @CBS4Jeff.