About Us

​Lights & Sirens International is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that operates for charitable purposes, with a mission to educate, support and develop youth by integrating sports and cultural exposure through civic education and guidance with a focus on developing community cohesion in Rhode Island and the Dominican Republic.

Our Story

Lights & Sirens International (LSI) was founded in 2009 with a simple but powerful idea: that service, sport, and shared experience can bring people together across boundaries.

What began as an international basketball tournament paired with humanitarian aid in the Dominican Republic quickly revealed a more profound need—both abroad and at home.

As conversations with public safety professionals and community members unfolded, LSI evolved to address the emotional strain, mistrust, and disconnect affecting those tasked with public safety and the communities they serve.

Grounded in mental health, wellness, and dignity, our work has grown into a platform for healing, accountability, and relationship-building—locally and internationally—rooted in the belief that lasting change happens when people are seen, supported, and brought together with intention.

“Lights & Sirens International is acutely aware of the systemic racism that continues to plague our country. We personally feel the profound pain and grief that it causes and see the direct affects it has on all members of our community. It’s understandable there is much to be done on a national level while recognizing the stronger need to address this at the local level.

Our program is designed to encourage students, adults and public safety personnel to be active participants in understanding the other’s perspective through cultural exposure, accountability, ego, implicit bias and conflict resolution in an effort to enable growth socially and intellectually while engaging in a physical yet social activity.”

— IHB

We believe in justice and equality for everyone — no matter where you come from or what you look like. The path to justice and equality for all is not an easy one or a clear one, but what is clear is that doing nothing is not an option. Our future depends on the actions we take today.