On Saturday February 4, PeacePlayers International – Cyprus was proud to partner with the US Embassy’s Micro Access Program to put on a special basketball clinic for 35 Turkish-Cypriot youth. The Micro Access Program works with Cypriot youth to bring them free English language education. Most of the kids come from areas where English language is not readily spoken or education is not available, making this opportunity very special for them. Learning English provides the kids with a great opportunity to go to university abroad.
On Saturday PPI-CY International Fellows Adam Hirsch and Gunnar Hagstrom ran a 3 hour basketball clinic, covering all aspects of the game from ball handling, passing, shooting and defense. Most of the children had no prior basketball experience but were enthusiastic as the fellows ran them through many creative games that challenged them physically and mentally. One such game involved them getting into teams of 4, and trying to figure out how to carry the ball across the court with only 3 feet touching the ground! Some kids carried their teammates on their backs, while others tried walking on their hands. The team that won showed the best teamwork, putting all their hands in the middle for the smallest kid to sit on like a seat.
Afterwards, everyone went out for a delicious lunch where the fellows could interact more with the youth. Many of them had never left Cyprus before, but were looking forward to attending University next year in places like the UK, Germany and Turkey. It was a great experience to get to the know the kids who have a bright future ahead of them.
The Micro Access Program is run through The Management Center, a center founded in 2001 whose goal is to provide sustainable development support to Cypriot society. They offer language education, jobs training courses and does local economic research and policy recommendations. PPI-CY has partnered with the Management Center often to run special projects like last Saturday’s clinic. For more information and pictures about PPI-CY’s special activities, please join our Facebook Group today!
