Charlotte, N.C. – Youth Advocate Programs (YAP™), Inc. Alternatives to Violence (ATV) teams hosted a Midnight Basketball event in August that brought the neighborhood together in a safe way while offering fun, fellowship and physical activity.
Twenty-five program participants joined YAP ATV staff and dozens of neighbors for the games at Ophelia Garmon-Brown Community Center on Freedom Drive. Opposing teams during the three hours of games comprised YAP ATV co-workers, their program participants, and other neighborhood residents. The tournament started at 10 p.m. and ended at 1 a.m.
“This event is one of many the team hosts to help change the norm that violence is Ok,” said Roosevelt Brooks, who manages the YAP Beatties Ford Road ATV team. “We’re connecting with people to let them know there are alternatives to violence and people who really care about what happens locally in your area.”
In 35 states and Washington, D.C., YAP is the nation’s leading nonprofit provider of community-based services that reduce the nation’s overreliance on youth incarceration, residential placements and helps reduce neighborhood violence. YAP oversees two of Charlotte’s three ATV sites in conjunction with the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County using Cure Violence methods. The Beatties Ford Road team launched the ATV program in 2021 and expansion of the community violence intervention program to the West Blvd./Remount Road took place in 2023.
The midnight basketball game was an example of the many ways YAP brings neighbors together in their efforts to reduce community violence. The YAP ATV teams provide intensive services to neighborhood residents who are at the highest risk of being engaged in violence, including those who recently served prison time and individuals who recently lost a loved one to violence and might be at risk for retaliation. Like YAP Advocates who deliver the nonprofit’s signature YAPWrap™ alternative-to-youth incarceration model, ATV members connect program participants and other members of the community with educational, emotional and economic resources to help them put their lives on a positive track.
“The whole purpose of Midnight Basketball was to drop baskets and not bodies,” said YAP ATV West Boulevard Program Director Donnell Gardner. “We host community events like these to let young people know that there are positive things they could be doing aside from making decisions that could possibly lead to violence.”
Midnight Basketball was held in conjunction with the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office, which provided security for the event. Food and drinks were also available. Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden said he is passionate about supporting events like the one YAP ATV hosted because he has seen a lot of tragedy after working in homicide for 22 years. He said he once helped save YAP ATV West Boulevard violence interrupter Shawn Moore in the 1980s from making a wrong decision when he was out with a group of young men. McFadden said two of those men subsequently lost their lives to gun violence.
“The (Midnight Basketball) event should be the start of something great and must be supported by all city and county officials,” McFadden said. “Reconnecting with those who saw my career from the beginning brought back many great memories and a lot of jokes.”
Thanks to the YAP ATV Advisory Committee member Shamaiye Haynes, co-executive director of QC Family Tree for securing the gym and helping to facilitate the tournament; along with David S. Lindsay, co-founder and executive director of Rally Charlotte, and the Ophelia Garmon-Brown Community Center for their support.
For more information on YAP, visit yapinc.org.