'Hoop for Hope' is more than a summer basketball league

Jun 29, 2023

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LANCASTER, Pa. — As the sound of basketball emanates from the hollow, players get excited to face their competition for the night.

But from the moment you look across the courts at Brandon Park, you know this summer league is something different.

"My league is pretty much focused on violence and non-violence in the community," said league founder Chris Johnson.

Johnson, who lost his son to gun violence, is on a mission. For the past eight summers, he has run the league "Hoop for Hope," to provide kids a place to come together.

"June comes and they know they have a place they can go every summer, [and] play," Johnson explained as one of the reasons for the league.

"It's a free basketball league and you don't see free things these days. I think it's important, you know, a lot of single moms out there that can't afford to send their kids to organized AAU things like that," he continued.

The league features teams all the way from Carlisle, across the region, and provides players a chance to be comfortable while uncomfortable.

Gene Lambert, Octorara's head basketball coach and team organizer for Hoop for Hope, wants his players to be able to adapt.

"[I] allow the kids a lot of freedom. Because I want them to be able to understand that yes, we run plays during the season, but sometimes plays break down, and when plays break down you have to be able to adapt and play the game of basketball," he told FOX43.

Hempfield's Danny Walck agrees and likes the outdoor feel of the game for the kids.

"It's a little tougher to shoot outside. The rims are tighter, you got to get to the rim, you got to finish. So it's a different part of the game that you're developing, which comes down to toughness. So we really we really like that," he said.

The players are ready to embrace that challenge, according to Octorara Senior Zach Kirk.

"The better talent that we are going to verse, but it's all to get ready for the season and this out here will help them in the season get better," Kirk explained.

It's not only a chance to get better as players, but to grow into men.

"[This is] about being a good teammate, it's about being a good person," said Johnson.

As reminders of the names lost to gun violence in the area hang on the fence surrounding the court. The white shirts serve as a reminder that there are always options and outlets available. Because for some sports is more than a game.

As Johnson believes the game is a parallel to life. "The same ups and downs that they go through on the basketball court, they're gonna go through in life."

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