Replay Hampstead: Second youth in household wins Schaefer award for helping others

Hampstead 12-year-old Jameson Greenwood believes every kid should have the opportunity to play sports, despite the sometimes high cost of registration fees and equipment.

To help families cover those costs, the Shiloh Middle School sixth grader decided to start his own nonprofit, Replay Hampstead, raising money and hosting sports equipment exchange events, helping children who want to play sports but otherwise couldn’t afford to.

“I wanted to do a service project,” Jameson said last week. With a love for sports and working with other kids, he was able to brainstorm with his family to come up with the concept for his nonprofit. While playing golf with his dad and baseball with his team, the Carroll Rebels, he noticed the positive impact participating in sports can have on someone’s life.

So far, he’s held one equipment exchange event in February, where people brought in equipment their own kids had outgrown to trade with others.

He’s also been collecting gift cards from sporting good stores to help buy some athletic equipment to donate.

Jameson’s initiative led him to winning the William Donald Schaefer Helping People Award in Carroll County. On May 19, Comptroller Peter Franchot virtually presented the award to Jameson, as well those who won the title in Baltimore City and Baltimore, Cecil and Harford counties.

“Jameson has not only created an avenue for children to participate in sports, he opened doors to brighter, healthier futures for each one,” Franchot said during the presentation.

“I was pretty surprised to hear I won since I had just started” the project, Jameson said, adding he’s just excited to be able to make a difference in so many kids’ lives.

Jameson is the second in his family to receive the award for taking action to help members of the community.

In 2017, Jameson’s sister, Makenzie, was recognized for a Little Free Pantry at St. John’s United Methodist Church on Main Street in Hampstead, inspired by Little Free Libraries, tiny take-a-book, leave-a-book constructions set up at various places. Makenzie is the youngest person to receive the award, being 10 years old at the time.

“I’m always proud of the kids. ... They have hearts for service and don’t ever expect anything in return,” Jennifer Greenwood, Jameson and Mackenzie’s mom, said. “Jameson talked about ideas for a while after helping out at the pantry with his sister. He wanted to create something of his own.”

She mentioned the nonprofit isn’t just for kids in need but for anyone having to buy gear. Since sports equipment can be expensive and families grow out of some of it quickly, she said it’s important to build a community of exchange, where kids can help each other by passing down what they can’t use anymore.

John Rudolph, associate pastor for the North Carroll Cooperative Parish and director of youth and kids ministry, has been involved in both Mackenzie’s and Jameson’s projects, as the parish aims to provide support and resources for those looking to engage with the community.

“Jameson is an athlete and he plays multiple sports so at an early age … he’s realized every kid doesn’t have that luxury,” Rudolph said. “He wanted to start to address that problem and bridge the gaps where needed.”

After Jameson came up with the idea for Replay Hampstead, the church’s role was to offer advice and guidance, setting up planning meetings and offering a church building as the site for the first event, he said.

“We’ve been working together since January … but Jameson has done all of the heavy lifting with the help of his parents,” he noted. “The kids are models for the adults in our parish, showing them this is what we can all do.”

Jennifer said she is “thankful to the church” for helping her kids live out their ideas. “We couldn’t do it without them.”