Celebrating One Million Pounds, Part 2: A Story of God’s Providence Through Clean Out For A Cause
- Drew Boe
- Oct 10
- 5 min read
Last month, our Clean Out For A Cause program crossed a milestone that still seems surreal: over ONE MILLION POUNDS of donated gear from college and professional sports teams across the country.
It’s an amazing number, but even more than the weight of the gear, when I look back, I see the steady, faithful hand of God’s providence.
God’s Providence in Ezra.
I began studying the book of Ezra with my small group at church this fall. In Ezra 1, the people of Israel were given permission by King Cyrus to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. A pagan king setting these exiles free is remarkable in itself. But God didn’t just let them go—He stirred Cyrus’ heart to provide resources for the mission.
2 “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: “‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. 3 Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem, and may their God be with them. 4 And in any locality where survivors may now be living, the people are to provide them with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with freewill offerings for the temple of God in Jerusalem.’”
Ezra 1:2-4
The return to Jerusalem wasn’t possible because they had earned the right to go free, or because the people had everything they needed to finally escape. It was possible because God provided. And that same story of providence is what we’ve seen in Uncommon Sports Group.
From a Basement to a Movement
The very first “clean out” was just me boxing up my old Cardinals, Chargers, and Gophers gear during my time at Virginia Tech in 2011. Selling those items provided over $2,000 to fund the flight for my first mission trip to Rwanda. A class project following that mission trip is what sparked the idea, “What if everyone in the college and pro sports industry did this with their used/excess gear?”
From there, God’s fingerprints have been everywhere. Only a few months later, God orchestrated our first-ever Clean Out donation through Tubby Smith’s generosity before he transitioned from the University of Minnesota to Texas Tech.
Soon after, we filled an entire room in my sister's basement with donations from college equipment managers throughout the country. Less than a year later, this expanded to fill my parents’ garage as well.
At every step, God provided.
Provision Through People
In the early years of our ministry, I often dreamed of one large donation that would provide all we needed. But God’s providence looked different: not one gift, but literally thousands of smaller ones faithfully given. 10,893 donations from 1,636 donors totalling 1,021,009 pounds to date, to be exact.
Just like in Ezra, God stirred countless hearts, and together those gifts added up to something far greater than any one act could accomplish.
He has provided through:
Partners like Frank Beamer’s nonprofit Hermas Readers who served as our fiscal sponsor until we became our own 501c3 nonprofit.
The Athletic Equipment Managers Association (AEMA), who gave us a platform to share the vision of the Clean Out program at the AEMA Convention just months after we launched.
Our first contractor, Ken, and his team in Minneapolis, who monetized the items for us when I was working hundreds of miles away at Auburn.
Wayne Kotulic and Texon Towel for sponsoring our first-ever scholarship awards.
The Four13 team was and is vital in helping us scale our entire e-commerce operation when we were buried in donations that needed to be processed.
Helmet Tracker, who helped us build a custom Inventory system that allows us to process items in just minutes.
Board Members who have volunteered countless hours prayerfully helping shape our ministry.
Our staff has established a Christ-exalting culture of humility, stewardship, and purpose-driven living.
Individuals committed to USG’s vision and with unique gifts and talents have been exactly what USG has needed in each season of our development.
Volunteers who have helped us repurpose shelving from libraries, hospitals, and law offices whenever we run out of space.
Keith, who stopped in after work each day to package orders on his way home from the bus stop.
Roger, who diligently sorted boxes in his garage when we ran out of warehouse space
Interns from Cristo Rey, St. Thomas, and the U of M when we could afford full-time staff.
My parents: My dad spent countless evenings and weekends helping build more shelving every time we ran out of space, and my mom has continued to help ship orders since day 1.
The dozens of volunteers who would come in for “Volunteer Events” on evenings and weekends to help sort donations and photograph items. And even helped move our entire operation into our current warehouse space in a single weekend so we would be ready to ship orders by Monday.
Each person, each contribution, each act of service—was God’s providence in action.
Impact by God’s Hand
Because of God’s provision, we’ve seen gear distributed in remarkable ways and literally millions of dollars invested in raising Christ-centered leaders throughout the college and pro sports industry by:
Connecting, encouraging, & equipping nearly 3,000 Christians working throughout the college & pro sports.
Raising 335 future leaders of the sports industry through our USG Academy
Fully funding 187 mission trips
$346,000 in scholarships awarded
Distributing gear and equipment through our mission trips and sports camps in Uganda, Zambia, Malawi, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Liberia, and Israel. And throughout the US, through our Laundry Events and other outreach programs - including over $250k of gear given away to inner city youth during the 2019 Final Four in Minneapolis.
The numbers only underscore His faithfulness: from 4,000 pounds of donations received in 2014, 10,000 in 2015, 21,000 in 2016, 50,000 in 2017, and more than 3,000 pounds per week today.
That growth wasn’t because we always had the perfect strategy, strength, or even space for the items. It’s because God has continuously provided every step of the way. He multiplied what little we had and turned it into much.
God’s Providence Then and Now
The story of Clean Out For A Cause is not a story of clever planning or lucky breaks. It’s the story of a God who has provided—again and again, through people, through opportunities, through gifts large and small.
From basements and garages to warehouses and box trucks, from a box of gear in the bottom of my closet to over a million pounds collected, the constant thread has been God’s providence. Just as He stirred Cyrus to send the Israelites with provisions, He has stirred hearts across the sports industry to give generously.
And because of His hand, lives have been impacted around the world.
So today, we celebrate one million pounds not as a number we achieved, but as a testimony: God provides. He always has. And He always will.
Here’s to the next million—entrusting it fully into His hands.
Drew Boe
Founder, Executive Director
Uncommon Sports Group
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