Springfield’s 48 Hours of Basketball brings in high school teams from all over to play at all times of the day.
At its core, this Norm Stewart event raises money for local charities.
“It’s just the love of the game that brings you here,” said Boys and Girls Club of Springfield Director of Development Didem Koroglu.
That love spreads beyond the court. This year the Boys and Girls Club of Springfield is feeling that love.
“All this money goes directly into our operation and programming, directly to our kids to support our mission. One of our core program areas is sports and wellness,” Koroglu said.
Rather than just being on the sidelines, the Boys and Girls Club laced up for a game of their own.
“That’s very exciting for them. Not just the monetary part of this but also being able to have that kind of exposure and have some fun,” Koroglu said.
The Special Olympics fundraises during the event.
“The money that we raise in all of our fundraisers helps us be able to provide different sporting events for our athletes,” said Development Manager for Southwest Missouri Special Olympics Haley Blevins.
A few of those athletes get to be at 48 Hours of Basketball and play a game.
“It shows that we’re here, people don’t always realize who’s here, so it makes it a lot more fun. Plus, we get to watch some basketball and play some basketball so that’s always nice too,” said Special Olympics coach and athlete Jeremy Tucker.
“Our players absolutely love every opportunity that they get to be in the community and getting to share what they love about Special Olympics. Their passion for competing is amazing,” Blevins said.
For these games everyone wins.
“We are stronger as non-profits when we work together, so it’s amazing that we get to partner with another non-profit here to share this time slot. It’s amazing to be able to do that, great idea,” Koroglu said.
