Nonprofit 'The Show Elite Inc.' empowers young athletes with resources on and off the field





Shane Covington



MILWAUKEE -- There are plenty of youth sports programs out there nowadays for kids to get involved in, but there's one in Milwaukee that involves sports and also teaches away from the field of play.

Three years ago, Shane Covington created Wisconsin's first high school seven-on-seven football program.

"We pretty much came up with the idea for AP football -- basically trying to get kids in the inner city and outskirts of the suburban areas coverage as far as high school football," Covington said.

The success of that program has grown into a nonprofit organization called "The Show Elite Inc."



"I just had this wild idea, like, 'Hey, instead of just servicing high school kids and football, why not branch off and go into other sports?'" Covington said.

Besides seven-on-seven high school football, there is a youth football program, basketball for girls ages 7 to 18, and a track and field squad for ages 6 to 18.

"Pretty much, I had a lot of people that I knew and I was like, 'Hey, if you want to start a program underneath my umbrella,' and was like, 'Sure. Let's get it done,'" said Covington.

While they train on the field, track, and court, there is something else they want to teach the young athletes.





"From there, I was like, 'Why just do sports? Why not give off the field services?' We added the mentoring and consulting. We also added the development and the wellness and we also added nutrition and we also added strength and conditioning," Covington said. "Every kid in the program and every program gets these services once a week throughout their practice."

The athletes said it's a lot different than other programs they've been involved with.

"It's like a family," said Arlaysia Braggs, Vincent High School junior. "They provide stuff that other AAU teams didn't provide. Like, they show that they care. Like, they be there for you. They make sure you are OK on and off the court. Feed you traveling. They help you travel."



"I feel like it builds character for all us. It's a brotherhood on the field, and I feel like we come together in the end like a family," said Devone Smith, Vincent High School junior.

"I'm just trying to get and help any kid I can, especially using the platform of sports -- try to get them to where they want to go, and them having fun, and get the opportunities -- keep growing as people and also getting better at their prospective sport as well," Covington said.

There are more than 400 kids from across the area that are involved in the program. If you'd like more information on The Show, CLICK HERE.