Team
Vision
Soar Detroit provides literacy tutoring and sports, to foster life-changing relationships and help kids flourish.
Our long-term vision is to turn Detroit’s literacy rate upside down, promote healthy community in our city, and see kids come to know Jesus.
Our Team
CEO
Director of Tutoring
Director of Partnerships and Training
Director of Finance and Administration
Founder
Partnerships
Sheree Cyriaque
Director of Partnerships
& Training
Taylor Jackson
Partnerships & Grants
Coordinator
Leah Barterian
Brand Marketing Coordinator
Tutoring
Valerie Ribbron
Director of Tutoring
Candy Borum
Tutoring Administrator
Tutoring Coordinators
Amy Van Wyk
Anne Brophy
Christa Fegan
Christine Willis
Micaela Sissom
Pamela Parham
Sara Waller
Tutoring Assistants
Ann Carter
Nettadine King
Jane Loudon
Amy Lyons
Our History
Soar Detroit was founded in 1999 by Doug Kempton, at that time operating under the name of Eagle Sports Club. With a strong passion to reach Detroit families with the gospel, Eagle Sports Club launched its first soccer league at Balduck Park with just over 60 kids and a heart to build life-changing relationships in communities.
What started as 60 playing soccer in the spring became 145 in the fall, with participation growing from there. Soon after, there were nearly 2,000 kids playing sports in a given year, with leagues now including baseball, flag football, and indoor and outdoor soccer. Throughout these years of growth, Soar Detroit was able to bring huge improvements to Balduck Park, including the UAW Ford Championship baseball field, state of the art lights, scoreboard, irrigation, and batting/pitching cages.
In 2005, the team introduced Soar, a literacy program for kids on Detroit’s east side, with just 15 students. Since then the program has served about 150 kids per year, with each child's reading improving by an average of 2 grade levels in each year of tutoring.
We are grateful for our history but most excited about what lies ahead.