Spanish Volunteers Host Basketball Tournament in Bliss Project

by Rich Kurtzman
International Volunteer from Spain

The Kings of the Court: Bliss 3 on 3 Basketball Tournament was a challenging yet highly rewarding activity. I wanted to provide a structured basketball activity for the kids of Bliss because upon arrival I could see their passion for the game – they were always on the court playing at 100%, running and jumping in worn-out flip-flops, and literally, the basketball court is the nucleus of that community.

The idea was simple: there would be a junior tournament in the morning (under age 15) and a senior tournament in the afternoon (ages 16-30). Intermixed were smaller competitions like free throw contests and lay-up contests for those who were not in the tournament. The highlight of these smaller competitions was the 4 ft. 2 inch, seven year old who beat all of the older kids by only missing 2 out of 15 lay-ups and having the crowd of 100 people cheering on his every basket.

Overall, the tournament proved to be a great success. More than 230 people from the community were involved in one way or another. The Boy's Club took care of all the equipment and helped keep the court clean, the Girl's Club dazzled with cheer leading dances at intermission taught to them by other VFV volunteers, the Mothers Club sold out of their delicious fish balls and lumpia, and 3 Bliss boys worked extremely hard as referees in the 90 degree heat. In addition, the VFV staff worked with me at every moment from the inception of the idea a week before until we returned the basketballs to the storage room.

I learned a lot about the Filipino people the day of the tournament. I experienced first hand how laid back and easy going they are and how they work on much more of a community level rather than an individualistic level. To them, it did not matter if we stuck meticulously to the timetables or the original “brackets”, it was about everyone enjoying themselves no matter who or when they played. Not one person complained when a boy entered, and won, the girls’ shooting competition. And when the championship game got canceled halfway through because of rain, the two teams amicably decided that they would split the prizes. As much as I enjoy the game of basketball itself, that day, I delighted in observing the Filipino culture from the inside.