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TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — The Martin Luther King Jr. Basketball Classic took place Monday at the University of Arizona in the McKale Memorial Center.
The event has been going on for 21 years.
It’s put on by the non-profit, Coaches for Charity and the Tucson Unified School District (TUSD).
Janet Hare, Coaches for Charity Vice President and Co-Founder, says the organization celebrates students in education and athletics by promoting a more healthy community life, giving back, and sponsoring great athletic events.
“MLK Day being our biggest one where we bring a number of high school girls and boys teams to celebrate Martin Luther King and by playing basketball all day long,” said Hare. “They have the whole McKale experience from coming in to the locker rooms and playing on the floor. A lot of our student athletes might not get a chance to go to a University of Arizona game so this is a once in a lifetime experience.”
16 high school teams throughout Southern Arizona played for so much more than a trophy.
The purpose is to celebrate MLK and to raise money that will go right back to their community.
Kelshawn Dixon Wright, point guard for Coolidge High School helped their team win 53-45 against The Gregory School.
Wright says it meant a lot to play on MLK Jr. Day and represent their city.
“We appreciate everything MLK did, you know? We probably wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him,” Wright said.
Many students also had the chance to win a scholarship by writing an essay to Coaches for Charity about the impact MLK has had on their life.
“We choose as many as we can and we give them scholarships that they can use toward continuing their education,” Hare said.
Each recipient will receive $250.
Coaches for Charity gave away six scholarships this year at the MLK Basketball Classic. Over the last 21 years, with the help of other events such as the Football Kickoff Classic, Bowl-a-thon and more, more than $50,000 have been given in scholarships.
One of the scholarship winners, Palo Verde High School Junior Mechack Mathumo, was born in the Congo and raised in Uganda.
He came to the U.S. in 2022 to take advantage of the opportunities in this country.
He says MLK Jr. is an inspiration.
“We celebrate somebody that did something, like he wasn’t only fighting for us, but for the whole United States,” Mathumo said.
Mathumo will be graduating a year early by getting ahead in classes in summer school.
He will be attending the U of A studying mechanical engineering.
You do not need to be a student athlete to enter the essay contest.
As long as you’re a high school student in Southern Arizona, you’re eligible to apply in the fall.
High school staff were also honored at the event who have demonstrated the values expressed by Dr. King.
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