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what counts


I GIVE TO … play it forward


why we give


“Getting to see the smiles on all of your faces is what it’s all about.”


dion waiters, philadelphia, pennsylvania


SEE PHOTOS


15,000


… Philadelphia residents live within a 10- minute walk of William Cramp Elementary School, whose revamped playground is open to the community after the last class bell rings. Awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, the new schoolyard— complete with a track, garden, and perfor- mance area—is a point of pride in a neighbor- hood where safe places to play are scarce.


SEE PHOTOS 24 · LAND&PEOPLE · FALL/WINTER 2016


He may play for the Miami Heat, but NBA star Dion Waiters’s heart will always be in Philly. Waiters attended Stanton Elementary School on the city’s southwest side, and as he puts it: “Every chance I got, I would climb over the fence and spend hours shooting hoops. This is where it all started, right here on this court.”


That court, though, could use an upgrade. So at a press event in March,


Waiters presented the school with a $10,000 check to help revitalize his alma mater’s barren asphalt yard. His message to the students looking on: dream big. “I came from nothing,” said Waiters. “I remember sitting in the same seats as you are today—and look at me now. I want you all to continue to go to school, have fun, enjoy life no matter how hard it is, and never let anybody tell you what you can or cannot become.” Waiters told a rapt audience of neighborhood kids that trouble seemed to follow him everywhere when he was young—but teachers’ support and a passion for basketball set him on a course for success. “The basketball program here at Stanton is how it all started. Spending time in this yard changed me.” Waiters’s generous gift will help The Trust for Public Land refurbish the court and transform the Stanton schoolyard into a vibrant gathering place for the whole community. Through a participatory design process, the students themselves will create a design incorporating green infrastructure features that do double duty managing stormwater runoff.


jenna stamm dan mahoney/okcthunder.com


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