Leah Haberman - a true believer in the power of sports to change the world.

PeacePlayers International was recently thrilled to learn that Leah Haberman, an extraordinary girl from Poway, California, will be supporting the organization as her service project for her upcoming Bat Mitzvah. Thank you very much, Leah!

In addition to her work on behalf of PeacePlayers International, Leah is a basketball and track coach for her local chapter of the Special Olympics. She’s clearly a true believer in the power of sports to change the world for the better, and PPI would like to salute her for her commitment.

The event’s still several months away, but Leah and her family have set up a wonderful website to keep others up-to-date as it nears. PeacePlayers International would like to thank Leah, and wish her the best of luck as she finishes her preparations for the big day!

The Irish Club of La Jolla High School, out in full force.

Congratulations to the Irish Club of La Jolla High School, in La Jolla, California, our third official members of the PPI Sixth Man and Woman Hall of Fame.

The Irish Club of La Jolla High School, led by Bo and Will Peterson, has supported PPI – Northern Ireland for several years, in any number of ways – from participating in St. Patrick Day parades, to hosting bake sales, to organizing concerts with authentic Irish bands, to performing what we understand was an uncanny Temptations impersonation in a local air band competition.

All in all, the Irish Club has raised over $3,500 for PPI – NI, but just as important have been their steadfast efforts to raise awareness for the work of PPI – NI in their community. We applaud the Club on their accomplishments thus far, and congratulate them on entering the Sixth Man and Woman Hall of Fame!

On behalf of all the participants of PPI-NI, thank you!!!

The Harlem Wizards: Fine Purveyors of "Trick Hoopz and Alley Oops"

We’ve written about the PPI Fellowship alumni here on the Sixth Man before, and today we’re proud to announce a new initiative sparked by the energy and enthusiasm of our former Fellows. On Sunday, March 21st, the Harlem Wizards will be playing the Safe Haven All-Stars at Columbia University’s Dodge Physical Fitness Center. This event has been organized by Danny Ourian, who spent two years working with PeacePlayers International – Middle East, and now works with the Safe Haven West Side Basketball League, which provides safe supervised recreational activity during the winter months for children in New York.

Danny, representing PPI - ME in NYC

The Harlem Wizards are one of the greatest basketball shows in the country, promising “Trick Hoopz and Alley Oops” at each one of their events, with a stock of talent that includes former players from the Harlem Globetrotters, several NCAA D-I schools and more, all determined to wow fans and put the best exhibition of basketball talent on display.

Tickets are $10 in advance for all comers, $12 at the door for children and $15 at the door for adults, and, thanks to the generosity of Safe Haven and the Wizards, proceeds will benefit PeacePlayers International.

With the combined energy of the Harlem Wizards, Safe Haven Hoops, and PPI, tickets are sure to move quickly. PPI will also have both former and current staff on-site to talk about their experiences with the program. If you’re in the New York area and looking for an opportunity to connect with PPI or learn more – or if you just want to see some exciting hoops on the Upper West Side – get your tickets now.

See the press release after the break for more information.

___________________________________________________________________

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:  David Lasday

Phone:   301-351-7939

E-mail:   Lasday.David@gmail.com

THE HARLEM WIZARDS VS. SAFE HAVEN WEST SIDE BASKETBALL LEAGUE ALL-STARS AND COACHES

Fundraiser Benefiting PeacePlayers International

New York, NY – On Sunday, March 21, 2010, the Harlem Wizards, show basketball team, are taking on The Safe Haven West Side Basketball League All-Stars and coaches at 6:30pm at Columbia University’s Levien Gym, to celebrate the end of the Safe Haven West Side Basketball League’s season. The Safe Haven team will be composed of standout youth players and volunteer coaches. The Harlem Wizards’ team features some of the top basketball talent in the world, exhibiting an exciting brand of “Trick Hoopz and Alley Oops.”

Proceeds from the game will benefit PeacePlayers International, a non-profit organization that uses the game of basketball to unite and educate children and their communities in conflict and post-conflict regions around the world.

According to Danny Ourian, Director of Operations for The Safe Haven West Side Basketball League, and former Program Director for PeacePlayers International – Middle East, “This event will serve as a great culmination to our season, while also giving youth from Safe Haven the opportunity to connect with and support a program (PeacePlayers International) that does phenomenal work, using the game of basketball to bring people together. We are excited to have our Safe Haven youth help raise money for such a worthy cause, and we thank the Harlem Wizards and Columbia University for partnering with us for this event.”

Tickets are $10 in advance; $12 for children (18 and under), $15 for adults, at the door. The event will also include raffle prizes from local sponsors.

The Safe Haven West Side Basketball League was designed to give children a safe supervised recreational activity during the winter months. Now in its 21st season, the league works with children in grades 3rd through 12th, while also offering a division for special needs youth. All games and practices are on weekends at public school gyms located on Manhattan Upper West Side. For more information, and to purchase tickets, please visit http://www.safehavenhoops.org/

Since its inception in 2001, PeacePlayers International has reached more than 45,000 children in global conflict zones, launching international programs in Israel and the West Bank, Northern Ireland, South Africa and Cyprus that integrate children from opposite sides of deep religious, ethnic or cultural divides through basketball. PeacePlayers International works on the simple yet powerful premise that “children who play together can learn to live together.”  For more information, please visit www.peaceplayersintl.org.

The Harlem Wizards are one of the greatest basketball show teams to ever “lace it up and let ‘em fly.” The Harlem Wizards’ mission is to create a joyous, awe-inspiring basketball experience for all. Since 1962, the Harlem Wizards have played over 6,000 games in both the United States and abroad, thrilling millions of fans along the way. The Harlem Wizards perform for colleges, corporations, communities and private events, raising millions of dollars for charities and non-profits, while providing amazing basketball entertainment. For more information, please visit http://www.harlemwizards.com/

PPI thanks the sisters of Kappa Alpha Theta at the University of Virginia

Sarah Brown, a senior at the University of Virginia, is one of many distinguished former PPI interns – in fact, she’s one of the early architects of our grassroots activities. Though she’s no longer a regular in the PPI office, Sarah has continued to support our work, most recently in combination with her sorority sisters at Kappa Alpha Theta. Theta organizes a trunk sale for charity twice each year, and picks a different beneficiary each time. Last semester, Sarah and her sisters donated one of their sales to PPI, raising roughly $150. PPI is extremely grateful for Sarah and her sisters’ support.

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PeacePlayers International would like to thank the St. Thomas More School, in Oakdale, Connecticut, for its longtime support. St. Thomas More School’s ties to PPI go back to 2007, when the school held the first of what has thus far been four annual fundraisers on behalf of PeacePlayers International.

Since that first event, St. Thomas More School has raised over $3,000 to support PeacePlayers International’s work worldwide. To put that in perspective, $3,000 can roughly cover the year-round costs of eight participants in Israel and the West Bank. The St. Thomas More School Community’s generosity has allowed four more Arab and four more Jewish young people to play together and learn together in pursuit of a more peaceful future.

Matt Quinn in his PPI-ME days, horsing around with an integrated team from Beit Shemesh and Esawiah.

The efforts at St. Thomas More have been led by Jere Quinn, a math teacher and the Varsity basketball team’s head coach, who has “honed the basketball and life skills of top players for three decades,” according to the Hartford Courant.

St. Thomas More has also played a more direct role in our programs by way of one of its alumni, Matt Quinn (Jere’s son), who played a leading role as a PeacePlayers International Fellow in the Middle East and Northern Ireland. You can read Matt’s thoughts about his experience in Northern Ireland here (“The American Director,” at the left).

Want to take a simple action to support PeacePlayers International?  We’re now eligible for inclusion in the latest edition of CauseWorld, a mobile app that lets you earn “karmas” – badges backed up by donations from Citi and Kraft – for your favorite causes just by visiting your own local hangouts. Vote for PPI to be one of three new Causes included in this round. (You can find us fourth from the bottom of the list on the right.) There’s no registration required and, with just a few seconds of your time, you’ll help others support PPI for a lifetime!

Gonzaga College High School, near Union Station, in Washington, DC.

PeacePlayers International would like to thank Donnie Walter and Gonzaga College High School for hosting a benefit tournament for PeacePlayers International – Northern Ireland. Donnie, one of the first official PeacePlayers International Sixth Men and Women, did an outstanding job organizing the tournament from start to finish, securing t-shirts, (delicious) pizza for the players, a snack bar, support from the Gonzaga Mothers’ Club, a DJ, and professional referees.

The event was a huge success, raising over $500 with 14 teams participating. As the event was held in Gonzaga’s gym, only a few miles from PPI’s headquarters in Washington, DC, PPI’s Executive Director Brendan Tuohey, himself a Gonzaga alum, stopped by to thank the players and say a few words. Most importantly, the event energized the entire Gonzaga school community, featuring players from all grades and even one player from Gonzaga’s perennial powerhouse varsity basketball team (ranked the 20th best high school basketball team in the country by USA Today).

Donnie had a camera on hand to film the event, and he and his friends are working on putting together a highlight reel to show off their work – we’ll be sure to post it here on The Sixth Man when completed.

PeacePlayers International would like to thank all the players, Gonzaga’s Athletic Director Joe Reyda, The Tramonte Family and the Italian Store, Lee Walter and the Gonzaga College High School Mother’s Club, the referees, and the entire Gonzaga community. We would also like to wish Gonzaga the best of luck in its basketball and hockey seasons.

Toma Beit-Arie, budding baller and activist.

PeacePlayers International would like to thank Toma Beit-Arie and the Beit-Arie Shlonsky Family for their generous support of PeacePlayers International – Middle East (PPI – ME). After learning about PPI from a former PPI – Cyprus Program Director, Joshua Motenko, Toma asked his friends and family to make donations to PPI – ME in honor of his Bar Mitzvah this November. In addition to raising well over $1,000 for PPI – ME (more than enough to support two participants in our Twinning program in the Middle East for an entire year), Toma and his family distributed DVDs and flyers to share PPI – ME’s mission with their community in Brookline, Massachusetts.

Later this year, Toma and his family will be traveling to the Middle East, and hope to visit our programs to see what their generosity is helping accomplish.

We’re sincerely grateful to Toma, his friends, and his family for their wonderful support!

To learn more about how you can support PeacePlayers International through your Bar or Bat Mitzvah, contact Development and Communications Associate Brian Cognato at bcognato@peaceplayersintl.org.

The Langley Saxons, with Head Coach Cheryl Buffo

PPI would like to congratulate the 2nd official member of our Sixth Man and Woman Hall of Fame, Langley High School, in McLean, Virginia

Led by Basketball Operations Director Jay Kuhn, Langley High School’s varsity girls’ basketball team hosted the First Annual PeacePlayers Invitational Tournament at their gym in McLean, Va., in December 2008. The Langley Saxons faced off against the South County Stallions, the Hayfield Lady Hawks, and Langley’s cross-town rivals, the McLean Highlanders. Over two nights, the tournament raised more than $3,000 for PeacePlayers International and introduced its mission of using sports for social change to hundreds in the town’s athletic community.