" We are richer when we give”: An interview with Tamika and Tauja Catchings

Since 2004, the Catch the Stars Foundation has been bringing fitness, literacy and mentoring programs to children in our community.  

Founded by Women’s Basketball Hall of Famer Tamika Catchings, the nonprofit targets at-risk youth ages 7 to 18 in the Indianapolis area.  

Giving back to the community has always been part of life for Tamika and her sister, Tauja Catchings, also a former WNBA player and co-founder of the nonprofit. 

“It was instilled in us from the time we were young,” said Tauja. “Our dad (Harvey Catchings) played in the NBA, and we grew up in an environment that was centered around faith and giving back. 

“Ever since we were little, we can remember doing family events that centered around community service.” 

We recently sat down with Tamika and Tauja to talk about philanthropy and community. 

(This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.) 

As a philanthropist of color, what do you need from an organization to feel connected and to want to support?   

Tamika: We have focused on fitness, youth literacy and youth development through the Catch the Stars Foundation. My passion is anything that is geared toward helping kids and ensuring they have what they need to succeed.  

I love art and support local Black artists. Many Black artists in the city do not have the resources they need to be successful. Tea's Me is a place where they can go and entertain and have a dedicated space. (This cafe is to not only serve the community food and beverages but also to provide programming and events.) 

Our goal has always been to be community connectors. We started out with targeted demographics, but now we have grown our programs. We have so much diversity in each of our programs and really focus on underserved youth.  

Why is it important for our community to support our region's Black-led or Black-serving nonprofits? 

Tauja: Because these organizations do great work, and they range in their different areas of focus.  

It's important for us to not only give back ourselves but to give others the opportunity to give back. Supporting is not just about the financial commitment. Volunteer, get involved, get your hands dirty and dig deeper. 

We have an unbelievable network of volunteers from different walks of life, socio-economic backgrounds, ethnicities and ages, and we all come together with the same purpose of giving, serving and helping. It has been rewarding to see kids who go through our programs want to come back after they age out and become volunteers and get involved. We have even seen their parents get involved and stay involved. It becomes a family effort.  

Why are you passionate about United Way and our mission?  

Tauja: UWCI is a great connector. For instance, over the years we've partnered with Flanner House for Indy Do Day (day of service) by hosting mentoring programs for youth in their after-school programs, by visiting and reading to youth in their preschool program and by sponsoring families for the holidays. Many of the families that we can support for the holidays take part in their job training programs. 

United Way connects people to resources they need and provides community-based organizations with resources to aid the community. You hear and see United Way everywhere, and the reach and ability it has to convene and collaborate with different organizations.  

What advice would you share for those considering ways to get involved in Central Indiana and/or the Black community – where to start and how best to support?   

Tauja: Start with an organization like United Way, where you can give, advocate or volunteer.  

Tamika: Network! We have been able to host Tea's Me Community conversations every second Friday of the month through Teas' Me, tailored to racial justice. Events like these have been added to a virtual platform to expand the audience and invite others into the conversation that generally might not have had access to join.  

Anything you want to do, we have here in Indy. It’s just a matter of looking for it and talking to people.  

What advice would you give nonprofit organizations looking to be more inclusive, equitable and culturally relevant?  

Tamika: Be intentional. Recognize what you need and what you lack and be intentional to go and find it.  

As you think about the Indianapolis community, what improvement would you like to see that would mark a successful outcome? 

Tamika: Building better communities in the pockets of the city that are not thriving. One thing that is concerning is gentrification and redlining. What can we do for kids in these neighborhoods to get them thinking beyond their immediate circumstances? Positioning youth to succeed is critical.  

It is essential to engage parents and caregivers. You can teach kids all you want, but they are not the ones grocery shopping and cooking. We started doing parent wellness clinics to teach parents healthy recipes, shopping on a budget – and we emphasized the importance of taking care of their health and well-being to be a great role model in the household for kids. It is hard because there are a lot of organizations that only serve youth. This is why UWCI’s Family Opportunity work/Two Gen approach is important – so families have those wrap-around services. You have to build the community within the home.  

What does community mean to you?  

Tauja: In short, a sense of belonging and connectedness and bringing people together.  

When Tamika was drafted in 2001, she tore her ACL and could not play. Tamika's mindset had always been: I want to make an impact and be a big part of my team. Her focus shifted to: How can I impact the Indianapolis community if I cannot make an impact in this way?  

She started doing community appearances – and she made a lot of connections and discovered needs in the community. We wanted to find a way to fill some of those needs.  

One of those connections was Riverside Park, and she hosted her first camp in December 2001. You saw kids that didn’t have anything to look forward to, especially during the holiday break. We gave them something to look forward to every day. 

We used basketball as the hook to get the kids to the five-day camp, but it was so much more than that. We poured into them and mentored them as we taught teamwork, life skills, goal setting and the importance of a positive attitude.  

They loved it, and then we grew. The following year, we added a fitness clinic. This was twofold, knowing that Indiana is one of the top states for childhood obesity. We realized not everyone likes basketball, but we wanted to teach kids the importance of being fit and active.  

Many of the kids we worked with are always on the receiving end. So how did we teach them the importance of giving back? Our clinic is free, but they had to bring canned goods that we then gave to Gleaner's foodbank. It was the coolest thing to see these kids be nonchalant about bringing in canned goods and watch them as we started putting all the cans together. They would then say, "Wow! We did this." 

Teaching them that it doesn't matter what your title in life is, how old you are or how much money you have. You can always do something to help someone else.  

How has your philanthropy evolved over time? 

Tamika: There's this notion that to be a philanthropist, you must have X amount of dollars and a platform – and that there are so many qualifications. That's not true. We saw a need and tried to figure out a way to help. We feel that we have been so successful thus far. Our eyes have been opened as we have been able to do more.  

We have tried to streamline our programs and focus on what we are really good at and then collaborate with organizations that are really good at certain things. It is not about reinventing the wheel. Here in Indy, there are a lot of organizations that are doing the same thing in silos. It would be so much easier for us (as nonprofits) to partner and not focus on whose name is at the top but rather what resources we can pull together to help reach more kids.  

Tauja: Even though we have our own nonprofit organization, it's not just about us. We are about supporting other organizations and being inclusive. 

Our goal as nonprofits should be to connect and give back, partner and collaborate. With that said, you must be strategic and intentional. One thing I have learned from watching Tamika is that we are richer when we give. It's not about how much I can accumulate for myself; it's how much can I do to help other people. This is the philosophy Tamika lives by.