WASHINGTON SPORTS CLUB BEGINS THIRD SUMMER OF BASKETBALL

        As we launch our third summer of youth basketball at the Washington
Middle School gym, we would like to express our gratitude to our players,
fans, sponsors and partners.  In addition to the 100% rock solid support
of our sponsor, Kids in Sports/Amateur Athletic Foundation, we have
received support from the schools, neighborhood groups, and various
individuals.  Please take a moment to review our 2001-2002 highlights,
some of our challenges, and our summer 2002 program.

HIGHLIGHTS of the PAST YEAR

        1. Last summer, the Washington Sports Club and Kids in Sports offered a
daily physical education program to the Longfellow Elementary and
Washington Accelerated summer school kids.  With coordination provided by
our Washington Accelerated partners, principal Ms. Karrone Meeks-Clark and
then-PTA president Ms. Sole Teramae, children from all grades received two
hour-long basketball lessons from Kids in Sports each week for five weeks.
     We understand that this has been the only physical education program
provided for any PUSD elementary students.  It was acclaimed by students
and teachers alike; teachers reported that it helped their students^Ò focus
in the classroom to have a structured outlet for their physical energies.
We are very proud to announce that Kids in Sports will provide funding for
two instructors for this summer as well.

        2. Also last summer, we began our regular Friday night of basketball
and with very occasional breaks we have opened the gym every Friday night
since.  We are now a year round program.  The program stabilized
dramatically with the hiring of 5th grade teacher Mr. Damon Bonds as Boys
Sports Coordinator.  Mr. Bonds is a PUSD product who recently returned to
the district to fill the position of his own retiring 5th grade teacher.
Mr. Bonds is much-loved and well-respected by his students and others and
is absolutely reliable, which is deeply appreciated by the players, the
WSC board and our volunteers.

        3. In October 2001, we marched 50 players, 10 parents, and two
not-so-portable basketball hoops down Colorado Boulevard in the Doo Dah
Parade.  Tens of thousands of people and TV cameras watched our beautiful
children shoot baskets, spin cartwheels and proudly represent both the
club and all Washington Bears.  We thank Tom Coston and the Lightbringer
Project for including us in that wonderful parade.

        4. In December, we received a small grant from the La Pintoresca Summit
Partnership and additional help from Monks Hill Neighborhood Association
to carry 50 kids on a school bus to Chuck E. Cheese^Òs for an end of year
party.  Players cashed in their Motivation Dollars (Mo^ÒBucks earned for
regular Friday night attendance ^Ö like professionals) for tokens and
pizza.

        5. This spring we sent two teams to compete against the other Kids in
Sports clubs from throughout Los Angeles County.  Although neither team
made it to the finals at USC, the 11 and under team did win their first
game 12-11 and only lost their second game by one point!  All the players
were very excited by the tournament.  We all returned with new energy to
work on our sportsmanship, team play, and skills.

        6. For the second spring in a row, Washington Sports Club/Kids in
Sports joined with the Rose Bowl Aquatic Center to provide swimming instruction
to 20 kids twice a week for ten weeks.  Ms. Teramae coordinated the parent
volunteers who accompanied the kids each Wednesday and Friday afternoon on
the school bus to the center.  We thank Ms. Ruth Porter, our partner at
the RBAC, and look forward to continuing and expanding this program.

        7. Once again, the club sponsored a day-long three-on-three basketball
tournament at the annual Family Fun Day celebration at La Pintoresca Park.
This year we had 96 players!  This included 6 teams in the girls division,
4 teams of 10 and unders, 4 teams of 17 and under boys (young men), and 8
teams of 13 and under boys!  Mr. Efrain Montes of the City^Òs Parks and
Recreation department arranged for the Greater Pasadena Soccer League to
provide trophies.  The trophies were a great motivator,
especially for our 6-year old winner.  We were most proud of the way the
girls came out and represented.

        8. Thanks to Sheila Fennoy of Café Culture of 1359 Altadena Drive,
(626)398-8654, we have been able to provide some work opportunities for
our players.  Once a month, a crew delivers flyers promoting the
coffeeshop.  They get paid $10/hour (including $2.50 which is set aside in
an interest-bearing college account).  Ms. Fennoy reports that customers
come in to the shop saying ^ÓI^Òve lived a few blocks from you for years,
but only found out about the shop when a delightful and polite child
handed me this flyer.^Ô  Since we are able to provide this delivery service
for significantly less than the cost of a stamp, we are hoping to expand
and serve other Pasadena businesses.

        9. Recently, we hired our founding board member, Ms. Sole Teramae, as
the Girls Sports Coordinator.  Ms. Teramae has devoted herself to this program
over the past two years and we are very pleased that Kids in Sports will
be able to compensate her for all of her hard work.  We also have a
regular referee in Mr. Gill Correa.  Although the kids always complain
about his calls, they complain even more bitterly if he is unavailable on
a Friday night.

        10. The biggest highlight of the year is that we watched several of our
regulars graduate from 8th grade.  We are exceptionally proud of Mr. Frank
Beatty, Mr. Ira Camp, Ms. Keisha Bowen, Mr. Jonathan Dennis, Mr. Michael
Garrett, Mr. Davon Jackson, Mr. Wayne Jackson, Ms. Janesha Owens, Mr.
Daniel Piepoli, Mr. Pashley Riley, Mr. Cordell Robinson, Mr. Deandre
Siggers, and Ms. Barbara Waffer.

CHALLENGES for the WASHINGTON SPORTS CLUB

        Thanks to Keith Cruickshank and his exceptional staff at Kids in Sports
for standing by us unwaveringly these past two years, the club has turned
the corner of sustainability.  We have partners in Ms. Meeks-Clark at the
elementary school and Mr. Michael Rochin, principal of the middle school,
and we have reached a peaceful coexistence with the Department of Parks
and Recreation.
 
        The club^Òs major challenges include: establishing a girls league with
at least 30 players; getting more parents and volunteers engaged;
strengthening our bonds with our current regulars, while reaching out to
include more neighborhood youth (especially Latinos and Latinas); securing
a permanent permit and access to the gym; effective discipline that never
makes a child feel unwelcome; and, of course, fund raising.  We also want
to start tutoring our athletes in order to prepare them for high school
and college.  A ventilation system for the gym (and a working drinking
fountain) would be a dream come true, and we are hoping to resurface the
gym floor.
 

SUMMER 2002 PROGRAM

        The Washington Sports Club is very, very excited about our summer 2002
offerings.  Our summer program includes:

        1. Monday night practices for basketball drills and life skills
with trained volunteer coaches.  Practices for 10 and under boys and girls
and 17 and under girls are from 6:30 to 7:30.  Practices for 13 and under
boys and 17 and under young men are from 7:30 to 8:30.  Every Monday night
in June and July.

        2. Friday night games in four divisions: (1) 10 and under boys and
girls (born in 1992 or later); (2) 17 and under girls (born in 1985 or
later); (3) 13 and under boys (born in 1989 or later); and (4) 17 and
under boys (born in 1985 or later).  Games begin at 6:30 every Friday
night in June and July.

        3. LA GALAXY tickets to all home games and the July 4th
celebration provided through the Galaxy^Òs Kicks for Kids programs.  Thanks
to Ms. Gloria King of the Galaxy organization.

        4. Weekend leadership and environmental education camp with
Outward Bound Adventures at their Bluff Lake Camp in the San Bernardino
mountains on June 28, 29, and 30.  Outward Bound Adventures has been
providing wilderness experiences for urban youth for 40 years.  This camp
is where they filmed Dr. Doolittle II.

        5. Daily basketball instruction provided by Kids in Sports
instructors for children attending Washington Accelerated summer school.
As noted above, this is the only structured physical education program for
elementary students in the district.

        6. Washington Sports Club tournament on July 26.  We are also
considering an open invitational tournament on Saturday, July 27, for
other Kids in Sports clubs and local Pasadena clubs.

        Thanks for reading this far.  As you can see, we are incredibly
proud of the kids and the program.  The club invites you to come and sit
in our bleachers and enjoy some amazing youth basketball.  Recently, we
were honored by a visit from Mayor Bill Bogaard and his wife Claire
Bogaard. The children were incredulous, but also very impressed with the
Mayor's sartorial savvy as he wore a polka dot bowtie in Washington Bears
colors.

        In closing, all the players help run the club.  We bring them in
to the program with basketball, but what really matters is the
relationship between the kids and the bonds that develop over time between
the kids and the adults.  Of course, this is crucially important to our
children and their future.  We are fighting the odds (the Sentencing
Project estimates that one of three African-American children and men
between the ages of 15 and 25 are currently controlled by the correctional
system).  That's why every child is welcome.  Every child plays.  Every
child wins.

        The club is equally important to the adults involved.  There is no
way to express the feeling you get when you watch a "troubled" kid reach
his hand out to resolve a conflict "minor or major" with another kid.
We welcome you to be a part of that feeling.

Philip Koebel