Community pitches in so kids can be part of NCAA First Four action

Community pitches in so kids can be part of NCAA First Four action

Dayton Daily News
By Tom Archdeacon, Staff Writer
March 12, 2011

The way Eleanor Harris put it, they needed a real buzzer-beater of a blessing.

“We weren’t going to be able to come unless somehow a miracle came our way,” said the director of the Harvest of Gold, a youth nurturing program in Wilmington, a town that has seen its economy devastated the past two years with the departure of the DHL shipping company.

“But now — thanks to some good folks in Dayton — we have our miracle.”

Among other things, Harvest of Gold runs after-school tutorial sessions, has a mentorship program and a Hot Hoops basketball program for at-risk kids, children from low-income families or those who especially need an extra parent figure in their lives.

One of the products of their program of whom they are most proud is Quinten Rollins, the superb freshman point guard of the Miami RedHawks basketball team.

Every year — as a reward for kids who have done well in school or in social settings and as a way to further bond the mentors and the mentees — Harris’ group has been bringing three to four dozen kids to the NCAA tournament’s Opening Round game at UD Arena.

Even with their funds dwindling, they had been able to afford the $6 tickets.

This year Harris had Arica Green, one of the Harvest of Gold coordinators, call the Arena box office to put in their usual order and they were stunned to find that the cheapest tickets for the new First Four format — eight NCAA tournament teams playing four games on Tuesday and Wednesday — cost $97.

Someone in the box office — hearing the dismay in Green’s voice — passed her story on to Neil Sullivan, an assistant athletic director at the University of Dayton who has become the liaison between the public and the Local Organizing Committee of the First Four.

“I sent an e-mail explaining the situation to the organizing group — explaining how Wilmington had been decimated by DHL leaving — and told about Harvest of Gold,” Sullivan said.

“Literally, five minutes later Therese Plaspohl from PNC Bank here writes back and says they would cover the cost of the tickets.”

As Plaspohl explained: “When you read the Harvest of Gold mission statement, you see they are about finding ways to make a difference in people’s lives — they are all about keeping families together — and now we can help them a little bit in return.

“That’s what we’re supposed to do as human beings.”

As the First Four approaches, people here are doing that in many ways big and small.

“It’s these type of experiences right here,” said Dale Brunner, the Vice President of Operations for the YMCA of Greater Dayton. “This is why we live in Dayton.”

Both Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and the YMCA, which has branches all across the Miami Valley, are recipients of an anonymous donor’s gift of $25,000 worth of tickets — well more than 100 tickets to each group — to the First Four games.

“He wants to stay anonymous because he doesn’t want it to be about him — he wants it to be about the community,” Sullivan said. “He knows this is important to our town for several reasons.”

Sullivan said a lot of folks feel that way: “We’re seeing a lot of goodwill with this in the community.”

He said Dayton Freight has donated a block of tickets to the Salvation Army. Flyers season-ticket holder Tim White has bought a sizeable number of tickets to be handed out to UD students.

Dayton Power & Light, Sullivan said, made a “philanthropic donation to help dress up the city with everything from banners to parties.” So did the Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association.

The bottom line, he said, is that “we’re just seeing the best side of people come out. It shows a real sense of community here.”

Giving back

All Sullivan will say about the man who gave $25,000 is that “he’s a humble-beginnings guy ... he’s a veteran ... and, I believe, he’s a UD season-ticket holder.”

The folks at both the YMCA and Wright Patt brought up one more thing: his heart.

“The best part is that our Airmen are given the opportunity to experience the events held around the area,” said base commander Col. Amanda W. Gladney. “Our young men and women sacrifice so much — they work long hours, they’re separated from their families — so it is really wonderful to give something back to them.

“The Miami Valley has again shown its amazing appreciation and support for the Air Force.”

The YMCA’s Brunner has the same sentiment: “We’re ecstatic over this gift. It’s going to be an experience our families will never forget.

“We’re the largest provider of child care in the Miami Valley. A lot of our families who have financial challenges or who might be dealing with a disability or any number of other things, have never had a chance to go to a UD game much less an NCAA tournament game.”

To double the number of people who will benefit from this, the YMCA has divided up the two-day ticket packages. Some 100-plus people will be able to go to the two games Tuesday evening and then another 100 will use the tickets for Wednesday’s games.

“The info I’m getting from all our branches is that the families are so appreciative,” Brunner said. “A lot of them want to show that appreciation, but I told them to wait until they’ve actually gone to the game. They don’t know quite what the experience will be like, so as soon as they get home, that’s when I want them to put their thoughts down. Maybe they can add a picture they took while they were there.

“As for right now, we don’t have any idea who the donor is. But there is one thing we can say: ‘Thank you ... Thank you very much.’ ”

Helping kids

The Harvest of Gold’s Hot Hoops program started 16 years ago when a group of men — especially Art Brooks, the director of multicultural affairs and an assistant professor of education at Wilmington College, and the late Rev. Larry Harris, pastor of Bible Missionary Baptist Church and Eleanor’s husband — started their version of Midnight Basketball.

“It’s not a league or anything like that, it’s just for kids to come in, have some fun and get off the streets,” Eleanor said. “Once it got started, they added some counseling sessions, some mentorships and some field trips.”

She said after her husband passed away quite suddenly, the church — now led by pastor Kurtis Summerville — sold a property it owned and used the funds (before they dwindled) to expand its programs.

“Our church worked with the prosecutor’s office, a Presbyterian church here and some other groups, especially Wilmington College, which provides our tutors from its Education Department.

“We get referrals from the three elementary schools here. They send kids to us each day for the reading programs and some of the other things we have.”

At the end of the school year, she said Harvest of Gold has always put on a banquet to honor kids who did well in the classroom or in sports: “We’d give them a little plaque, and last year, Miami’s coach Charlie Coles came over and was our speaker.”

This year that banquet may also fall victim to a lack of funds.

With their bare-bones budget, the Harvest of Gold folks found even First Four transportation costs too prohibitive — plus it would be taking kids on a trip two straight school nights — so they are only using one night’s worth of tickets.

They gave back the Wednesday night sessions so another group could experience the same good fortune they have.

“We just can’t believe that someone is going to sponsor us,” Harris said. “This is just a true blessing and the kids are really getting into it.”

So much so, said Arica Green, that they can’t wait for tonight:

“They’re all waiting on Selection Sunday. They want to find out just who they are going to see.”