Hoops For Fun hasn’t changed much in 33 years.
Brian Sylvester and Gary Turner had some hard and fast rules for their fledgling basketball league when it started. That included teaching youth the fundamentals of the game and ensuring that everyone involved went home with a smile on their face.
“The key word was fun,” Sylvester said.
The founders are part of the 2024 class of inductees into the Stratford Sports Wall of Fame. Sylvester and Turner were invited to a dinner on Saturday with other nominees, in a celebration that included the Stratford Minor Sports Council awards banquet at Stratford Rotary Complex.
The league continued to grow over the years, offering local youth a chance to play hoops once-a-week with their peers. Each night featured an instruction session so players could learn the game, followed by a scrimmage.
Sylvester, now 72, and Turner, age 79, told My Stratford Now that they just wanted a place for youth to play the game. Optimist Club members at the time, they said the league started with about 30 kids.
“It just kept growing,” Turner said.
Indeed, the league had more than 300 participants last season.
The emphasis was on learning the game and it remains so. Rules encourage balance, with players not allowed to score too many points, ensuring everyone gets the ball and a chance to score a few buckets, the founders said.
The founders did a lot of work, even washing jerseys for several years. They also had community help with coaching. Refereeing would be looked after by local teacher Henroy Bailey. Former City of Stratford employee Beatrice Jordan helped find gyms to host games.
John and Marg Van Ness, who also helped with the program, nominated Sylvester and Turner for the award.
Stratford Sports Wall of Fame honours individuals whose athletic abilities have brought fame to themselves and their community and has resulted in a climate which benefited athletes and athletics. Each inductee is recognized with a plaque and photograph on the Sports Wall of Fame at the Stratford Rotary Complex.
Classes include individuals, teams, builders and, sometimes, legends.
Sylvester and Turner were inducted in the builder category. Stratford Central Rams senior girl’s volleyball team were inducted in the team category. The team won four consecutive provincial high school titles from 1987 to 1990.
Jim Parker was inducted in the individual category. Parker was a track and field athlete and coached at Western University for three decades.
