High school teams give assist to cause
Area basketball players will gather next week to take their best shot at making a difference for their communities.
Naperville North and Oswego high schools' annual Hoops for Healing charity basketball tournament will begin Monday with proceeds benefiting the Edward Cancer Center.
Eight teams -- North, Oswego, Oswego East, Waubonsie Valley, Geneva, DeKalb and Walter Payton College Prep high schools and the Illinois Math and Science Academy will participate.
"It shows they can take a God-given skill they have received to play basketball and use it in a positive light in giving back," said North Athletic Director Doug Smith, a cancer survivor who created the tournament.
"Basketball is more than just a game," Smith said. "Sure, we play to win. There's no doubt about that or we wouldn't be keeping score. But when the tournament is over, everyone who participated is a winner through the people we're helping."
The games will be played at 5:30 and 7 p.m. Monday and Tuesday at both Naperville North, 899 N. Mill St., and Oswego, 4250 Route 71. The tournament will resume after Thanksgiving with games all day Friday and Saturday at Oswego.
Tickets for tournament games are $4 for adults and $2 for students. Hoops for Healing bracelets also will be on sale for $2.
Smith said he hopes to raise $10,000 from this year's tournament. Proceeds will go to Camp Hope, an Edward Cancer Center program that gives children whose family members have been diagnosed with cancer the chance to attend a summer camp.
About 25 to 30 children attend each of the weeklong camps, which run in both June and August for no charge to the families.
"It offers a sense of normalcy and a place to have questions answered and a place to be a kid for a while," said Janet Haines, executive director of the Edward Hospital Foundation.
In addition to the basketball games, cancer survivors will talk to players about cancer awareness and leading healthy lifestyles. Edward health professionals will be on hand throughout the tournament running booths on cancer screening and support groups.
There also will be a blood drive beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday at Oswego, a new addition to the event this year. Donors will receive a holiday basket from the Heartland Blood Center.
Smith said it doesn't take a basketball fan to enjoy this type of tournament.
"Everybody in some way, shape or form knows somebody affected by cancer," he said. "Everyone has the opportunity to come to the tournament and give back."
For the full tournament schedule visit http://athletics2000.com/napervillenorth.
If You Go
What: Hoops for Healing basketball tournament
When: 5:30 and 7 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, all day Friday and Saturday
Where: Monday and Tuesday at both Naperville North, 899 N. Mill St., and Oswego High School, 4250 Route 71; Friday and Saturday at Oswego.
Tickets: $4 for adults, $2 for students
Info: (630) 420-6490 or http://athletics2000.com/napervillenorth/