WHO WE ARE

Hello, this is Jonathon and Ashley Baker! We are the owners of Camp Ninja Warrior, an obstacle course training gym focused on developing our ninjas in the pillars of strength, kindness and courage. In other words, we want them to develop confidence and character from their time spent training at our gym. Our vision is to provide a world-class experience for our ninjas and their families and this campaign will help us get there. In order to do so, we need help funding the upgrades and improvements to our gym covered by this campaign. This will further the work of raising up strong, kind, confident leaders for the next generation who are trained to think and operate outside of the box and possess a can-do attitude and mindset to facing and overcoming real-world challenges and obstacles.

 

WHY OUR MISSION IS SO IMPORTANT TO US

Our goal at Camp Ninja Warrior is to provide our families with a world-class ninja athlete training experience. With this campaign, we desire to take our gym to the next level by improving our facilities and upgrading our equipment.

There are a number of reasons this campaign is so important to us.

First of all, when families watch American Ninja Warrior together, they are provided with a world-class experience with state-of-the-art-obstacle course equipment, environment and surround sound system. While not every child who is a member of our gym will likely end up on the show, we are dedicated to providing the right environment to develop and nurture child prodigies and future American Ninja Warrior contestants and, hopefully, winners! We want to provide that same wow factor and top-of-the-line experience for all participants, both children and adults, at Camp Ninja Warrior!

Another key reason this mission is so vital to us is because of the many heartwarming stories and the tremendous progress we have witnessed in both children and adults taking classes at our gym. A number of the children have competed at multiple UNAA area competitions and several have qualified for regional competitions. Already, we are noticing current ninjas-in-training who have demonstrated the necessary potential in skill, character and dedication to become master level ninja warriors.

 

THE POWER OF COMMUNITY AND A STRONG SENSE OF BELONGING

It is extremely important to us to demonstrate the power of community and what we can achieve when we unite and rally together around a common goal. Another reason we are so dedicated to what we do at Camp Ninja Warrior is our awareness that the ninja warrior niche tends to attract outlier kids. These are kids who do not fit into the mold of traditional sports and whose parents are looking for non-conventional and exciting outlets for all of their overflowing energy. Nurturing community is very important to us and we are committed to providing a safe space of thriving and belonging for all of our ninja warriors!

We are also beyond excited by stories like that of one of our amazing ninjas who happens to be a cancer survivor and travels to Tennessee once a year for a cancer check-up. He’s having his birthday party this year at our gym and is bringing some other cancer survivors with him to help him celebrate. His mom reached out to us to ask if it was okay if several of the kids have some limitations. We were happy to share with her that all of the kids were more than welcome to come and have fun at their friend’s birthday party and explore any obstacles they are comfortable with. In such a case, we let our coaches know in advance to ensure all of the activities are tailored to each participant and both match and celebrate their current athletic ability while giving them the opportunity to stretch themselves if they are up to it. 

Many of our parents also book regularly scheduled private training sessions throughout the week for kids who need them. 

We have another kid who is on the spectrum and non-verbal whose mother let us know that he had really negative experiences while trying his hand at similar sports before they found Camp Ninja Warrior. Both we and his mother are amazed at how well he is doing and the progress he is making by being allowed to go at his own pace and being championed and celebrated every step of the way!

 

THE MAGNITUDE OF WHAT YOU ARE HELPING US ACHIEVE AS A CONTRIBUTOR

Every kid wants to feel like a superhero and we provide them with the opportunity to test their skills and do just that at their current level of athletic ability. A growing number of kids struggle with self esteem and confidence. We want to be able to address this alarming trend by empowering kids through the strength and character training provided at Camp Ninja Warrior!

We are also hoping this campaign helps to spread awareness about our upcoming summer camps and brings in a record number of aspiring ninjas this year!

While we are investing the time and sweat equity to grow deep and raise our current location to an outstanding level of excellence, our long-term vision is to launch 10 Camp Ninja Warrior locations in the next 10 years to position us to be a tremendous blessing to our ninjas, their families and the surrounding communities!

Ultimately, with this current campaign, we are raising money so we can improve and upgrade our gym to continue providing world-class ninja athlete training services to kids and adults COMPLETELY DEBT-FREE!

 

FUNDRAISING GOALS AND PROJECT PHASES

Our current fundraising goal is $100K. The gym improvements and upgrades are taking place in four subsequent phases roughly estimated at about $25K each. The breakdown for each phase is as follows:

Phase I – Repainting Gym Interior and Interior Mural. We are having the entire interior of the gym repainted and have also contracted with an extremely talented professional muralist to add a personal touch to one of our interior walls that incorporates our CNW logo with her artistic flair. The first part of this phase has launched and is currently in progress and we are so excited about the noticeable difference in the appearance of our gym!

Phase II – Installing Gym Flooring. The gym is roughly 4,000 square feet. 2,000 square feet is currently covered by gym mat sectionals while 2,000 square feet is covered in concrete. We are going to install professional rubber gym flooring to cover the concrete in this phase of improvements and purchase brand new custom Camp Ninja Warrior logo mat sectionals to cover the rest of the floor in the fourth and final phase. 

Phase III – Upgrade Audio-Visual Surround Sound and Video System. We are going to install a brand new, state-of-the-art, audio-visual system to provide crystal clear surround sound which will greatly enhance the experience of guests at all of our parties and any future competitions we get to host!

Phase IV – Upgrade Gym Obstacle Course Equipment. In this phase, we will be purchasing brand new custom CNW logo mat sectionals, pull-up station, new holds, CNW logo tress mats, and more to take our gym offerings and training capacity to the next level!

 

CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTOR APPRECIATION AND CORPORATE SPONSOR PERKS

Any and everyone is welcome to get involved in helping us accomplish our goal! There are two main ways people can give: 1. As a Campaign Contributor of any amount, and 2. As a Corporate Sponsor at any tier!

Campaign Contributors of any amount receive our earnest and most heartfelt appreciation and thanks as well as an invitation to attend the UNAA Area Competition hosted at our Camp Ninja Warrior gym on Saturday, March 25, 2023 where we will give you a chance to be publicly acknowledged and honored as a group! 

Corporate Sponsors will be able to select between five levels of sponsorship and will receive an array of rewards/perks depending on their selection that includes: shoutout on social media, distinguished shoutout at our live competition event in March, business logo on event programs, business logo on event T-shirt, business logo/ad on our Camp Ninja Warrior website for one quarter year, Swag/Goodie Bags, invitation to host a representative table and the opportunity to meet, mingle and build relationships with potential future clients at our live competition event in March, business logo placement on our indoor advertising banner, business logo/ad placement in our Camp Ninja Warrior monthly newsletter for one quarter year, ad placement in media roll on our gym TV, special celebrity shoutout, and, drumroll please: business logo placement on our outdoor road banner for 1 full year!

We are especially excited about that last perk because our current outdoor road banner is positioned in a high visibility, high traffic area of central Bixby right along South Memorial Drive. If you are able to join our Corporate Samurai Ninja sponsorship level, we want to give you a chance to snag your spot on the banner and take advantage of this prime advertising space with us when we commission our next one!

For more information on our corporate sponsorship tiers, please reach out to us at bixbyninja@gmail.com or at bixbyninjateam@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you and answering any questions you may have about supporting us at this level!

Win-Win Outcome

We are hoping to reach 100% of our fundraising goal. Thankfully, even if we don’t, Indiegogo will still allow us to keep all of the funds raised minus the applicable fees for utilizing their platform!

 

THE DIFFERENCE WE CAN MAKE TOGETHER

Being a Ninja-exclusive gym, we have a unique offering that people all over want to be a part of. We are all about instilling pivotal core values in all of our trainees that they can use for the rest of their lives. We love being able to create a culture where our coaches love coming to work and our ninjas love to come and play. Our contributors and sponsors get to be a part of providing our aspiring ninjas with a place where they feel loved, special and that they belong!

After one birthday party, a kid came up and hugged my (Jonathon’s) leg and looked up with such an earnest expression, and asked, “When will I get to come back again?” We also recently received a thank you card in the mail from a grateful parent after a birthday party that included an unexpected and generous cash tip just to say thank you for providing a great experience and for the time and attention given to their child that had a profound impact on them.

By contributing and sponsoring, you are helping us make a difference in a growing number of young kids, by providing a place where they feel loved and special and celebrated. You get to be a part of that experience with us!

 

RISKS & CHALLENGES

A couple of the obstacles we are presently facing involve the timeline we are working with. The timeline is pretty tight. We are trying to do this in 45 days. We have been offered the unique opportunity to host an upcoming ninja warrior athlete UNAA competitions close to the end of March and we would like to improve our facilities and upgrade our equipment and obstacle courses in time for this event.

There is a risk that we may not be able to raise the projected funding necessary to complete the various project phases in time. As such, we are leaning heavily on the support and generosity of corporate sponsors and friends and family contributors such as yourselves in helping us complete each projected phase by the competition date of Saturday, March 25, 2023. Also, we will be executing these upgrades and improvements without any interruptions to our regularly scheduled classes, birthday parties and open gym sessions. Additionally, we have already gathered the bulk of the quotes needed and made the necessary contacts to get the various phases of the improvements underway without delay!

People might wonder why we are not just taking out a loan, but we are relatively new and still growing. We’re not at the place yet where we are making a revenue that is over and above but we believe that with these changes, we’ll be better positioned to get there as word gets out about what we are doing and what we are able to provide for our growing company of ninjas. We are trying to do this the non-traditional way not just using our credit card. Rather, we are choosing to grow and expand debt-free as much as possible. We are hoping that people will resonate with this desire and will step in to help us toward this goal. 

Thankfully, Indiegogo also has a built-in option to transition a campaign from active to ‘in-demand’ status which keeps it open and will allow us to continue receiving contributions toward our goal even after the initial campaign end date of February 15, 2023 has passed.

 

OTHER WAYS TO GET INVOLVED

We understand that some people may not currently be in a position to contribute or sponsor, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still be of vital help.

SHARE: We would love to invite you to help us get the word out by using our Indiegogo sharing tools to spread the word on your social media platforms!

SERVE: Also, some of you may be or may know people who are skilled  in contractual work and are willing to donate their services. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us if this is the case and please accept our most genuine and heartfelt thanks in advance!

CONNECT: Some might even be able to connect us with a contact you have in the Ninja world that would be willing and able to help out in some way!

PRAY: And, finally, another absolutely invaluable way you can show your support is by praying for us on this big adventure!

 

WE LOVE AND APPRECIATE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU AND ARE INDESCRIBABLY GRATEFUL FOR ALL OF YOUR HELP, ENCOURAGEMENT, PRAYERS AND SUPPORT!!!!