High-schoolers organize all-star charity basketball game to raise money for Alberta Children's Hospital
CBC
Some young Calgary students went head-to-head with the pros at a charity basketball game on Saturday, all while raising money for the Alberta Children's Hospital Foundation (ACHF).
The All Stars Charity Basketball Game, held at the Prolific Sports House in southeast Calgary, was organized by two local high school students: Jayda Bharmal and Bianca Jiwa.
Jiwa, a student at Henry Wise Wood High School, said she and Bharmal organized the event to raise awareness about mental health and plan to donate to the Centre for Child and Adolescent Mental Health — a new space under construction for youth in Calgary that will offer walk-in mental health services. The centre is a partnership between ACHF and Alberta Health Services.
"I personally have had people who have been affected by mental health and I've really seen the effects that it has on people [with] both their physical health and how they think, how they act," Jiwa said.
"I just think it's a really great cause to support."
Bharmal and Jiwa aimed to raise $10,000 at the event, which they achieved through donations and local sponsorships.
The main event of the charity basketball game was a match between a U13 girl's team of local students and professional sports players.
Bharmal, who attends Dr. E.P. Scarlett High School, said she wanted to give young girls the rare opportunity to play against professionals.
"We just thought that girls getting to play against people they wouldn't normally get to would be exciting for them, empower them," she said.
One of the pros at Saturday's game was Nik Lewis, who played slotback for the Calgary Stampeders from 2004 to 2014. For Lewis, coming back to the city and attending community events like Saturday's is important.
"I just love giving back to Calgary…. [It] has a special place in my heart," Lewis said.
Lewis also said it's crucial after years of the COVID-19 pandemic to support children's mental wellbeing.
"Mental health is so important these days, and we want to make sure that [kids] stay strong and know that they're important."
As for the game, the girls put up a tough fight but ultimately lost 62-54 to the all-star team. However, the girls did put Lewis to the test.
Trevor Allen didn’t worry about who had the most extravagant decorations or brightest bulbs.
Alberta's transportation minister could hear the horns blaring from inside his office.
A single northbound lane on the long-awaited Pattullo Bridge replacement has opened to traffic, marking the first step in a phased opening process.
The Yukon has been grappling with an extreme cold weather system that's pushing the power grid to the brink because it can't keep up with demand.
The days leading up to Christmas day can be the most stressful time of the holidays. Especially if those days are spent travelling to the post office hoping to pick up that special, last minute gift you ordered online, just in time to put it under the tree.
The Yukon's energy provider says Whitehorse is not at imminent risk of blackouts, but with very cold weather forecasted through the holidays, residents are still being asked to conserve power.
A pedestrian is dead after a vehicle crashed into a building in Toronto, said police.
RCMP in Inuvik, N.W.T., say two youth have been arrested after officers found suspected cocaine and a loaded firearm at a home in the community.
Canada and 13 other countries issued a joint statement Wednesday condemning the Israeli security cabinet's approval of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Alberta health officials are flagging the circulation of a rare bacteria known as Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) among homeless adults living in Calgary.
The future of a prominent building in London's Old East Village (OEV), once home to the London Food Incubator, is looking uncertain following the relocation of its anchor tenant and the planned departure of another.
As Yukon continues to deal with a prolonged spell of extreme cold, emergency officials are advising people to be prepared in case of a power outage.
Police say they have found and arrested 47-year-old Douglas Yetman, a man wanted for murder.