The students I coach are hard-working student-athletes who live in St. Paul. As the coach, I demand the best of my players on and off the court and believe that athletics, and the participation in athletics, can teach students valuable lessons in life. Unfortunately, many of them do not live in the best situations and do not come from the best backgrounds. For many of my players, basketball is their retreat from their situations. It is also a great motivator for many of my students to do well in school and in life. My players know that if they want to play basketball they will have to be good students and good citizens; as I say over-and-over again, "Student comes first in student-athlete." Working with these students is extremely rewarding, but it can also be challenging when it comes to competing against other teams that have more resources and financial support from their parents and community.
My Project
I am looking for a few simple items to make our program more competitive and the experience for my players more enjoyable. One item we are in desperate need of is new practice basketballs. Our basketballs are old and worn from years of use, and it would be nice to have balls similar in quality to the ones we use for games so my players can practice with game balls everyday.
Also, my players don't have access to quality water bottles at home and the water bottles we have as a program are old and leaky.
Hydration is important and it would be nice for my players to have quality water bottles like every-other team we compete against.
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