Footys-for-All: Gallus founded charity to help kids

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An Australian man is on a mission to improve the lives of kids around the world - one ball at a time. Michael Gallus has created an organisation called Footys-for-all, which gives sports balls to disadvantaged kids and ultimately, gives them hope. Greg Navarro has the story.

After 2 decades as a school teacher - Michael Gallus says he had a mid-life crisis of sorts.

MICHAEL GALLUS FOUNDER OF FOOTYS-FOR-ALL "Instead of buying a sports car, I started a charity because I'd seen the positive influence sport had on kids lives through my teaching and through my fatherhood and through my community coaching."

The concept was simple - to give balls to children from disadvantaged backgrounds. His first shipment went to a remote Aboriginal community. One project - and one photo - and Gallus was hooked.

MICHAEL GALLUS FOUNDER OF FOOTYS-FOR-ALL "The eyes were just full of hope, the Aboriginal girl's face beaming - you can't get that reaction, you can't get that expression unless it means deep down in their soul that they are happy, that they are fulfilled, they are part of this community and part of this world - that's what that ball gave them."

That became the mission of Footys4all, to reach kids who needed help across Australia and around the world. Gallus began chronicling his work and its impact. And he quickly learned that the true value, went way beyond the balls.

MICHAEL GALLUS FOUNDER OF FOOTYS-FOR-ALL "The people come up to me and say thank you - they don't say thank you for the ball, they say thank you for caring about us, thank you for actually coming to see us, to acknowledge that we are out here firstly and that we are out here doing it tough."

GREG NAVARRO SYDNEY "it's still tough to ignore the sheer number of balls he's handed out over 6 years - about 23,000 and counting."

SYED ARIZ DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, SHAHEENS SPORTING CLUB "That's an amazing effort and if you look at it, it is basically the way Michael is contributing to the community, it's just one way that is telling all of the people around that look, it's pretty simple all you need is just a will to go out there and do what you love to do and give back to your people."

Running an all-volunteer organization hasn't been easy. Gallus relies on sponsorships and donations. And the former school teacher now works as an Uber driver at night to just to pay his own bills. But stopping isn't an option.

MICHAEL GALLUS FOUNDER OF FOOTYS-FOR-ALL "How can someone in the world not actually have someone caring about them? A lot of these people and these kids in these communities that we get to they don't have that understanding, they don't have that family connection, and to see kids without hope in their eyes, that is the worst thing that is happening in our world at the moment."

Despite the great personal cost - you can usually find the Melbourne man with a smile and the kind of passion required. To make that seemingly impossible mission possible, one ball at a time. Greg Navarro, CGTN, Melbourne.