Holy Ghost Prep Junior Firebirds basketball clinics help youngsters on spectrum connect
Then-Holy Ghost Prep senior John Burke, inspired by autistic younger brother Tony, started the Junior Firebirds in the 2019-20 school year.
After a hiatus in 2020-21 due to COVID-19 and the lack of a successor to Burke, Bobby Williams brought the program back in 2021-22 and is finishing his third year running the Junior Firebirds for special needs children.
It is six weekly, hourlong Sunday morning basketball clinics at the school's Holt Center with an average of 35 participants ranging in age from 6 to 43.
"It gives them the opportunity to be defined by their skills on the basketball court — how well they can dribble and shoot — not by autism," Williams said.
Williams has the sessions set up similar to regular basketball practices, minus the scrimmaging. There are stations for shooting, dribbling and passing, with plenty of encouragement.
Williams, a lacrosse player at Holy Ghost, is one of roughly 25 student helpers each week featuring contingents from the basketball and baseball teams, as well as students not involved in school sports. They learn how to better interact with and identify children and adults on different levels of the autism spectrum with hands-on experience.
"One of the best things I have experienced is seeing kids at first being nervous or timid, but by the end of the program, seeing them more confident and outgoing," said junior basketball player Zak Sharlin, a regular attendee. "It is a great experience to witness the kids learning to trust me and the others involved with the program.
"Some of the most important lessons that I have learned through this experience are having patience with myself and others, a greater understanding of different challenges different people face, and how important it is to try and always be a positive role model. ... We gain as much from working with them as they do from us."
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The final clinic of this school year is set for Sunday.
The program will be back in 2024-25, when sophomore Bobby Wimsey will take over the Junior Firebirds as Williams heads to Penn State.
"A Bobby W dropping it off to a Bobby W," said Williams with a laugh.
All that matters is the program will continue.
"We get so wrapped up in our daily lives, worrying about school and jobs, that it is nice to be able to refocus on what is important," said Tom Heston, Junior Firebirds faculty adviser and the Holy Ghost basketball coach.
"Junior Firebirds is a nice reminder of being happy with the little things in life. We always have a large group of Holy Ghost students helping each week because they enjoy seeing the smiles and hearing the laughter."
Tom Moore: tmoore@couriertimes.com; @TomMoorePhilly
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Holy Ghost Prep hosting Junior Firebirds basketball clinics
