Number of Participants: 52
Hours Donated: 10
Value of Time Served: $4,394
Event Type: Health & Medicine
Sport: Basketball
School: Harborfields High School
Date: January 12, 2024
Location:
Harborfields High School
Taylor Avenue, Greenlawn
NY
About:
This is a joint event between the girls varsity basketball team and a club at the high school called Stand Up Strong which is a cancer awareness group.
The boys basketball team will be hosting a benefit game as well.
The girls basketball team has been doing pink games annually for a long time. As of last year, they started trying to amp these games up to really try to make it an event rather than just a game where they wear pink. The Stand Up Strong club mentioned implemented a Stand Up to Cancer moment where everyone gets a sign saying “I Stand Up For _________”; they then write a name in the blank space of a loved one who’s been affected by cancer. The club is also decorating the gym with posters, balloons and streamers.
The basketball team is holding a bake sale and selling merch to fundraise for Corey’s Promise, an organization set up by the family of a young Harborfields alum who recently passed away from cancer (his sister, Caleigh, is a senior on the basketball team). The Stand Up Strong club will also have a donation jar. These donations will be split between Corey’s Promise and Maggie’s Mission, another local pediatric cancer organization set up in memory of a Harborfields high school student who passed away from cancer. Also, this year a Harborfields 1st grader named Belle, who is currently battling cancer, will be a special guest. She will be recognized and given a gift and a basketball signed by all the girls on the team.
The club has been putting in a lot of work. They have put in hours organizing – including decorating, shopping, planning, spreading the word, etc. The team has also helped by making posters, running the bake sale, etc.
“This event is something really close to my heart, as I’m the club president and a captain of the basketball team. I’ve spent over 2 months planning this and coordinating with the coaches, athletic director, and my club advisor.” — Kerri Gadamowitz, Student Athlete Harborfields High School
Pre Game ceremony can be viewed here: https://fan.hudl.com/usa/ny/greenlawn/organization/17578/harborfields-high-school/watch?s=U2NoZWR1bGVFbnRyeTI0MjUyNjEx
Harborfields High School held its annual Coaches vs. Cancer girls basketball game on Jan. 12. The event raised funds for Corey’s Promise, which supports families with pediatric cancer, and Maggie’s Mission, which raises awareness for pediatric cancers and sponsors cutting-edge research.
“Unfortunately, cancer touches all of us in some way,” Athletic Director Rob Franco said. “The Harborfields Athletic Department and the girls varsity basketball program, along with the Stand Up Strong Club, asked everyone to show their love for the people they care about who have been affected by this horrible disease. We asked them to stand and take a moment to hold up signs to show their support for those individuals that are currently battling cancer, and those who have battled cancer.”
Before the jump ball against Amityville, senior captains Kerri Gadamowitz and Caleigh Phelan presented Washington Drive Primary School student Belle Svoboda with a signed game ball and gift. Svoboda is currently fighting alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare form of cancer that is diagnosed in only 100 cases in the U.S. each year.
“Belle is a warrior and a role model for all girls and our entire Harborfields community,” Franco said.
IMG_5121: At the Harborfields High School annual Coaches vs. Cancer girls basketball game and fundraiser on Jan. 12, Washington Drive Primary School student Belle Svoboda was presented with a signed game ball and gift.
Photos courtesy of Harborfields Central School District