Youth Basketball Ministry
Greeting Ascension Families,
We hope that you are all doing well and staying safe. We are reaching out to ALL ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOL CHILDREN (High School and Adult players will be contacted at a later date).
We are pleased to announce that we are moving forward with bringing back our Youth Basketball Ministry. We wish we could say that all is going back to normal but unfortunately things will look a little different (hopefully not forever).
First off, we are inviting every single elementary and middle school child (boys and girls). There are no try-outs, everyone will be placed on a team. You do NOT need any prior basketball experience. We are happy to take any child that wants to participate. We continue to tell as many people as will listen that our goal is not to produce the next (W)NBA superstar. Instead, our goal is to bring your child/niece/nephew/granddaughter/grandson closer to the church and increase tremendously the odds of the child actually getting married in the Greek Orthodox Church one day. It certainly worked out that way for your two Co-Athletic Directors who not only got married in a Greek Orthodox Church but each went on to become Ascension Parish Council Presidents and stayed connected with the Ascension community.
We will be complying with local and state guidelines and mandates in relation to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic. All players are currently required to wear a mask over his/her nose and mouth during basketball practices. We have modified our practices to include more drills and side games and less running full court scrimmages. All doors to the gym will remain open in hopes of getting as much ventilation as possible. Each player is required to bring his/her own water bottle. Each player will be instructed that they may exit the gym with or without permission at any time to get fresh air and mask break. Sanitizer for hands will be available and each player will be required to wash their hands prior to and after practice.
Guidelines/mandates/rules seem to be changing frequently and as they change, we will follow along. Each parent/guardian of a player must agree to follow these rules as will be set out and changed periodically. Everything that we will ask of you is what has already been asked of you in schools and other sports leagues. We are NOT going to ask for anything more restrictive than need be to comply with local and state guidelines and mandates. At the very minimum, you will be required to keep your player home if he/she is showing any symptoms of being sick. While we can’t ever be 100% safe in any gathering, some common rules amongst us must be in place and we firmly believe that you will understand and respect this position.
Parents will be encouraged to wait outside for the players to finish. If your child is young and perhaps new to the ministry, you are welcome to come inside so long as you agree and follow the rules we set out. Please remember that all of us coaches and directors are volunteers who are here to teach basketball and ensure that the players have fun. Please help us out by following the rules so we are not put in a position to divert time away from basketball and fun to Mask Police and misery.
All basketball practices will take place on Saturday mornings between 9:00 a.m. and noon. Our first practice will take place Saturday, September 25, 2021. We do not yet know when the actual league will take place. Historically the league began on the first or second Sunday of the year but 2022 may be different. We charge a modest registration fee (TBD but approximately $75.00) and ask (hope and pray) that each player sells 10 ticket at $10 each for our fabulous All-Star Breakfast fundraiser that we hold annually.
The Orthodox Youth Athletic Association (OYAA – the league we play in) classifies teams as follows:
Girls & Boys Elementary School = 3rd , 4th & 5th graders*
Girls & Boys Middle School = 6th, 7th & 8th graders*
*we are able to take some players who are younger than 3rd grade provided they are physically strong enough to shoot a regulation basketball through a 10 foot hoop. This is strictly enforced for safety reasons.
PRACTICE SCHEDULE
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Girls Elementary & Middle School
10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Boys Elementary School
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Boys Middle School
We are looking forward to having our players lace up their shoes and drain buckets!!
Jim Glafkides & A.G. Konstantin
Ascension Co-Athletic Directors
