Catholic Central boxes out bullying
TROY, N.Y. » The idea to fund raise an anti-bullying basketball tournament came about when a student at a school outside of Catholic Central needed tuition money to transfer to the private Troyarea high school.
The student was a victim of bullying, and saw CCHS as a safe haven. It lived up to its word a year ago, as students and community members came together for a Box- Out Bullying 3- on- 3 basketball tournament.
And now needing tuition for another year, the tournament was held again on Saturday — this time with more money raised, more sponsors, and more attendees.
“If we can just help one student out, that’s what it’s all about,” tournament organizer and CCHS alum John Reilly said. “The basketball is just the fun part. Now more than ever, you need to be aware that what you say in the locker room really has an effect on your teammates and the people around you.”
They signed up 24 teams to play in Saturday’s tournament. The younger kids would play early in the day and a more competitive tournament would take place in the afternoon. They played three round robin games, then a single elimination tournament based on the results of the round robin.
“It’s just really nice to see peo-
ple from outside schools coming in to help the support the cause,” said Lili Van Vorst, tournament organizer and president of the school’s social media club. We spread the word through social media. We were tweeting out to different schools. People were trying to spread the word as much as they could.
Last year former NCAA National Champion Craig Forth participated, and this year a lot of successful alumni donated. The goal was to raise $ 4,000, and by around 1 p.m., that goal seemed attainable.
Many local companies had donated, as well as CCHS alumni. It may all be to benefit just one student financially, but the purpose of generating awareness was meant for everyone associated with the event.
“We want to flip the narrative on the athlete who’s the bully on its head, and turn athletes into leaders in the community,” Reilly said. “Whether that’s service or sports.”