The Street Mayor Classic was founded on Feb 9, 2013, as a result of the teacher’s strike of 2012-2013. Many students lost out on extracurricular activities due to lack of available teachers and volunteers. A number of kids we were coaching on the Woodstock City basketball teams expressed their frustrations and disappointments about how it would be their last chance to play with friends on school teams before they graduated.
Having started up an event company called Revelated.Me, we decided to do something about it. We put together a student charity 3-on-3 basketball tournament to give back to the youth in our community. We set out to create a different atmosphere by adding live music and a halftime show, and perhaps most importantly, we encouraged the older teens to mentor the younger kids. We achieved this by structuring the tournament to allow older kids
to play in their group divisions, do drills alongside the younger kids between games, and also referee.
This created a good mentoring cycle, which has continued throughout the years. We also brought back former Woodstock Chill and Oxford Attack players (who have gone on to play post-secondary basketball) to buddy up with the younger players, inspiring and encouraging them to take their skills to the next level. We encouraged parents to not just drop their kids off, but to stay, watch and participate, as there were many opportunities to win prizes for themselves and their families.
With ages ranging from 11 to 18, we held this year’s tournament at College Avenue Secondary School on June 20. Once again having a great response, we
look forward to the future of the tournament. This being our third consecutive year, we plan to continue to provide positive and constructive options for our youth, showing the kids that we care.
Story submitted by: Revelated.Me
