The first of two outdoor courts in Yonkers will be at Barton Park later this fall with a second basketball court in the works to be rebuilt in the spring of 2019. A ribbon cutting ceremony will be scheduled at the completion of the courts.
Pete’s dream to refurbish basketball courts in Yonkers started with his fundraising from individual contributors. “I understand great things cannot be done without great partnerships,” says Pete. “We have great partners like Nancy Lieberman’s DreamCourts Foundation and World Ventures Foundation who supported the project along with providing the high-quality specifications for the two courts.
The basketball and anti-bullying program will be for 30 students selected by Yonkers PAL and YMCA, who are also partners in this project. The students will meet on six consecutive Saturdays beginning on November 24, 2018. This program will have indoor winter sessions and outdoor summer sessions all free for the youth of Yonkers. Pete Spano, Barbara Hanna, Shawn Jenkins and Tom Meier Jr. will be spearheading this program. Yonkers Mayor Spano will be visiting the session on Saturday, 8 December.
It was an amazing international partnership that has brought this new and exciting program to Yonkers.
The Yonkers-East Yonkers Rotary Club endorsed Pete’s idea in early 2015 and alongwith support from local Rotary District 7230 and a South Korean Rotary Club received approval for a Rotary International Foundation Global Grant.
Leonard Spano, Executive Director at the Westchester School for Special Children joined the partnership seeing the need for these refurbished courts in the community.
Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano, DPW, Planning and Development, Parks and Recreation Department along with the Yonkers Community Agency Development Board approved the removal of the current court which is in very poor shape, put new asphalt over the court and make other improvements in the park.