Our Mission

Speak Detroit Youth Sports, a Non-Profit organization, and the SD Dream were formed in 2025 to offer youth in Metro Detroit the opportunity to become a part of an elite sports and mentorship program that is committed to the total development of current and future student athletes. We are dedicated to not just teaching the principles of “practice, play, succeed”, but also identifying how to use these same principles to develop a plan for success to reach one’s goals. We don’t just think success, we DREAM success.

“Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit. We are all the same in this notion: The potential for greatness lives within each of us.”

— Wilma Rudolph, Olympic track and field athlete

Board of Directors

Dion Traylor is a lifelong Detroit resident. He attended Detroit Public Schools (Detroit Western High School), and he also attended the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Dion has been an avid supporter of Detroit Youth Sports in volunteer roles as Coach, Manager, and Director with Detroit Youth Programs such as the Westside Cubs, Detroit Cass, and, most recently, Detroit PAL.

In January 2025, Dion’s dream of a Youth Sports Organization that services the entire youth of the city of Detroit came to be with the creation of Speak Detroit Youth Sports. His goal is to provide high-quality youth education and mentorship programs to Detroit’s youth using sports as the common connector. His role as Executive Director makes him responsible for bringing life to programs that are needed, and he believes what it says in Galatians 6:9: “So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up.”

Dion believes that we must plant seeds of success for our youth; it is only through this type of investment that we will be able to open the eyes of our youth to greater things.

Maurice Traylor is an educator, leader, and community advocate dedicated to helping young people succeed on and off the field. A proud Detroiter, Maurice has spent more than a decade in higher education, where he has designed and led programs that advance access, retention, and student achievement at institutions including University of Detroit Mercy, Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, and Wayne State University.

At Speak Detroit Youth Sports, Maurice serves as Vice President and Director of Mentoring and Academics, overseeing holistic support for student-athletes through mentoring, academic success coaching, and college readiness programming. In this role, he works closely with families to ensure that every young person in the program is equipped with the skills, resources, and confidence to thrive in the classroom, in competition, and in their future careers.

Maurice’s connection to youth sports runs deep. Before stepping into higher education leadership, he coached youth baseball for several seasons in Detroit’s Rosedale Park at multiple age levels, where he witnessed firsthand the powerful link between athletics, mentorship, and personal growth. This experience continues to shape his approach as a success coach, where he focuses on cultivating resilience, leadership, and transferable life skills in student-athletes.

He is a proud two-time Warrior, holding a B.A. in English and an M.Ed. in Career and Technical Education from Wayne State University, as well as an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Full Sail University. He is also a proud husband and father of two daughters, who inspire his daily commitment to education, equity, and community impact.

Dion II is the son and youngest child of our Executive Director Dion M. Traylor, SR. DII, as he is normally called by fellow coaches and his players, is a product of Detroit Public Schools (Detroit Cass Tech) and spent his Jr. and Sr. years at Southfield Arts and Technology.

DII has been in and around sports his entire life, from little league with the Westside Cubs and the Berkley Steelers, to High School, where he played Defensive Back for both Detroit Cass Technicians and the Southfield A&T Warriors. Dion’s (DII) role as Program Director makes him responsible for program personnel, coaches, and team rules and policies. DII believes that all kids should have the opportunity to grow by making sure sports and mentorship programs are available to all.

Marcus Berry has been impacting the lives of our youth for 10 years. He has worked in education for the past 6 years, 3 of those being a middle school Dean, and has been coaching boys’ basketball for 10 years on both the middle and high school levels. He is currently coaching basketball at Warren Fitzgerald High School and has been there for the past 5 years. Developing youth is his passion and he keep God at the center of it all.