School of Skills Vision
Press Release

When something or someone has an impact on your life it is usually very special. I received a note from another mom at the end of the school year which fueled my efforts to bring School of Skills to other children and their families. It has been a rewarding summer to see my son Ben and his friends learning basketball skills and progressing together with huge smiles and faces glowing with perspiration. They were learning more than basketball, they were learning skills for life.

The note explained that Ben had encouraged her son to step out of his shattered world and be a player. Words like “nice try”, “good job”, and “you can do it” helped her son believe in himself again. Ben came in as the “new boy” that could play basketball, but his kind nature is what was inspiring. He learned how to grow as a player and give back at this program in Los Angeles called School of Skills.

When facing some challenges of our own this year that is exactly what these coaches did for us. They came all the way from LA (twice) to help us give the program a try here and then also in North Carolina. The time and expense was great but the concept proves to be invaluable. If you encourage kids to concentrate on their individual skills and take out the element of competition for a while, confidence and progress soars.

I was an exceptional swimmer at a very young age and put into the “Senior Group” ahead of my time. Skipping ahead and not properly learning skills and fundamentals caused me to power my way through my swimming career rather than effectively train and compete. The honor of the quick advance hurt me down the road and led me to burn out half way through my college swimming career.

We offered four hour and a half sessions a day at our second summer clinic held at Grant Street Gym and some kids showed up for all four sessions each of the four days, improving and providing support for their friends that were training right along with them. In Charlotte, NC a seven-footer joined us and was so happy to be coached on skills rather than just valued for his height. After a summer of evaluating this program I am convinced that it is an excellent blueprint with caring and generous coaches—hence all of the effort and T-shirts!! The program is well structured and serious, yet delivered with care and a sense of humor.

To create a place where kids walk in and say, “I feel good here” is the goal. The Police Athletic League and Grant Street Gym are a wonderful support. Terry Parks from BCC Melbourne helped us get a great start in June. Al from Longdoggers sponsored some of our athletes believing in helping out kids any way we can. So many people from the community stepped up to the plate to offer assistance. Coach Soliven from Mel High let us use 30+ basketballs to aid in all of the ball handling drills. Laurissa Reynolds from FIT and FAA was on hand to help coach and all of the parents were a pleasure, offering their encouragement of the program.

We welcome area coaches and parents to come and critique our program so we can join forces to accomplish goals together. A year-round skills and fundamentals program would enhance the level of play at schools, leagues and recreational facilities and would be a win-win situation for all—from the beginner to the seven-footer. We have great footage from all of our events in both Florida and North Carolina where we hope to first duplicate this program. Check out the website at www.schoolofskills.net for the latest.

The future plan holds a year round, multi-sport training facility that will attract top notch coaches with lots of energy. Cloning Coach Kory and Coach Derek from LA would be ideal, but with their shared coaching knowledge and dedication to kids we will make this vision a reality. A combination of talents, giving spirits and proactivity is what we are looking for. The Orlando Magic is showing an interest in this endeavor and we plan to capitalize on some of that excitement. One thing we have yet to do is turn anyone away. Thanks for joining us. We will be holding another week long clinic in November and looking for a home in the meantime.

School of Skills strengthened our son in LA, which in turn impacted a child here in Florida. Sensing a void and following words of encouragement from other parents and coaches has given us a mission to complete.

Sincerely,
Donna B.