Windy City

       

Gerald K. Harris born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA moved to the Chicagoland area after graduating from Dillard University in 1977. After successfully forming Insurance Support Systems a full service insurance brokerage firm located in downtown Chicago, Gerald and Donna Boyd-Harris married and started their family. Looking for a youth football program in his Galewood neighborhood for his son Gerald K. Harris II, Gerald found the Windy City Dolphins, a start-up program that was in need of leadership and guidance. He graciously stepped up to the plate and has successfully run the WCYFL since. Always remembering his Pittsburgh roots, it was important to Gerald to build a successful program that could compete with surrounding suburban programs as well as other city programs while making it affordable for low income participants. To this day the WCYFL has never once turned a child away because of the financial shortcomings.

 

An active participant in his community Gerald witnessed the influx of street gangs in the Austin, Lawndale, Garfield Park, and Galewood communities. It became even more important to him to build a program that could deter the children of his community from joining forces with these gangs. Over the last 20 years Gerald has witnessed participants move on to some of the best high schools and colleges around the country. Keeping a  tabs on many of his participants Gerald has not only built a successful youth football and cheerleading program that boast successes such as State, Regional and National Championships but he has built a family where the former participants come back for guidance. During his time as the President of the WCYFL Gerald has helped build other successful youth football and cheer programs throughout the city, including the Lawndale Falcons which was a spinoff of the Dolphins to better serve the children in Chicago’s struggling Lawndale neighborhood. Currently Gerald still serves as the President of the WCYFL, President of Insurance Support Systems, and sits on the Board of the United Youth Football League.