In a time where citizens constantly hold stubborn to their own opinions and bias it is often hard for us to come together, but very seldom do we set those views aside to indulge in the light-hearted occasions—the joy of entertainment.
Located at Barbara Goleman High in the school’s gymnasium the Town of Miami Lakes and the City of Doral competed in a community-based event that thrilled an audience filled with cheering residents. The Mayor’s Second Annual Basketball Tournament stirred an excitement which brought two unlikely communities that favored a likely cause.
“It’s about building community and about bringing people together for a great cause,” said Juan Carlos Bermudez founding Mayor of the City of Doral. “Basketball just happens to be the way we’re bringing people together, but it’s much more about community than basketball.”
A cause—that is essentially what brings people together.
This year’s cause was centered around Danny Quesada, a young spirit that suffers from cystic fibrosis, a chronic pulmonary illness that has no cure. However, for Danny, who has been battling CF all his life, this does not mean the end. Despite the extensive medical procedure that Danny will undergo, he still maintains to do what he loves best.
“Danny is a fighter and he’s had to be all his life,” said Manny Quesada, Danny’s father. “He’s a major outdoorsman, he loves to fish, he loves to hunt he’s also a runner so even with his lung illness he was able to run cross country.”
The annual basketball tournament not only encouraged a bond between two communities, but also provided the support necessary to uplift a common cause, regardless of any distinctions.
“It intertwines two sides of the neighborhood to work together, to be in each other’s backyard,” said Kerby Choute the head coach for the City of Doral basketball’s team.
The event, which featured talents from other schools like Goleman’s High school band and Miami Lakes K-8’s cheerleaders, was a night fit for community bonding. The smell of buttered popcorn and the selling of chips and soda attributed to the evening family feel that was well-deserved for those who carried a long weekend.
