A girls’ basketball team from a remote northern Manitoba community is on the trip of a lifetime after their coach fundraised $17,000 following the death of one of their teammates.
Kishma Davidson, the God’s Lake Narrows, Man. basketball coach, set up a GoFundMe page in the hopes that she could raise enough money to take her team to the IEM Basketball midget girls tournament in Newmarket, Ont.
Davidson said she had originally voiced her idea to one of the girls on the team last year. However, on Nov. 20, 2016, the girl died by suicide, causing Davidson to begin seriously looking at fundraising options.
“She passed and I decided that I’m going to dedicate all of my time and effort to make sure the girls got here,” Davidson told CTV’s Your Morning on Thursday.
The girls on the team also contributed to the fundraising efforts by creating bingo cards and taking part in bake sales and silent auctions. As of March 30, the team had raised $17,145 on their GoFundMe page, exceeding their goal.
According to the GoFundMe page, the team lacked many basic items such as basketball shoes and uniforms as many of the students come from low-income families.
“It means a lot, it feels like it’s a dream come true for them,” Davidson told CTV’s Your Morning. “I’m so grateful for this opportunity and I think it’s going to have a lifetime impression on them.”
According to the fundraising page, many of the students in God’s Lake Narrows, an isolated fly-in community with a population of 3,000, have never been outside of Manitoba, limiting their ability to play against other teams outside their community.
The girls basketball team arrived in Toronto for a few days packed with activities, including a visit to the CN Tower and Ripley’s Aquarium and tickets to a Toronto Raptors’ game. They will also participate in a special practice with Raptors point guard Cory Joseph.
Davidson said she wants the girls to see that there is a world of opportunities outside of their community and that the trip is about more than just basketball.
“I’m hoping that they take from this that anything they want to achieve is achievable,” said Davidson. “Any goal, any career, anything they put their heart and mind to they can achieve.”
