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These little flash drives contain something really special. I was up till 3am this morning finishing the movie I had filmed over a 4-week duration. The film was of the Veez Hoops Basketball Summer Camp, run by Vanessa Gidden at the Yerwood Center, here in Stamford. The kids were 7-15 years in age. What started out as an idea to get 60-second footage of different types of activity that Vanessa includes in the program, became something much more.

This was a journey. Through the camera lens I saw much more than footwork and ball handling. I saw a gentle giant, a girl who spoke in whispers; a kid who fractured a finger on her right hand only to learn to shoot with her left; a young boy who was small, well-built and, though heavy on his feet and always last in the sprinting exercises, would never give up and would always finish.

I saw boys who were streetwise and tough looking at the beginning of the camp yet who became willing servants of the rigors Vanessa was teaching them. She worked them hard but she gave them equal amounts of discipline and praise.

So, I decided to put an e-book together containing 120 photos presented in different sections: The Players, The Drills, The Game, The Special Moments and, especially, a section called 'The Dream' that contained two slides. One slide was a collage of all the letters the kids wrote when asked to write down their dreams having read Dr. Seuss' 'Oh The Places You'll Go. (see the 3 dreams below, from the youngest camp member ). The other slide comprised photos I took of Vanessa when she gave them a talk about dreaming big. She explained her childhood, how she got into basketball and what she dreamed of. After she stated each dream, Vanessa showed proof to the kids: a newspaper article, a Jamaica players shirt, an Israel shirt, one from Minnesota Lynx, from Connecticut Sun, a Sue Bird exchange shirt. It was honest and inspirational.

I also burned an mp3 of her talk, placed it on the drive and spent half the night burning a portable version of the movie. 36 flash drives later, and four hours sleep, I headed to work, keenly anticipating a half day holiday to go to Yerwood to check the set up was in place for projecting the movie.


Alanna's dreams
Work hard
Never give up
There are games to be won