They were loud, enthusiastic and were cheering as loud as they could for the Mystics who were playing the Fever that night at the Verizon Center. I was there hosting some folks and knew that during the evening I was going to meet a group of coaches from Lebanon that were being hosted by the US State Department as part of the Sports Visitors program.
 |
| Photo courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State |
At the time I didn’t realize that this group, whose collective smile was a neon sign of welcome, was just that group. Their spirit was so compelling that I found myself in their row, wanting to learn their cheers and discovering that this indeed was our esteemed visitors. They were a group of men and women and it was clear that they loved basketball, were happy to be here in the states and that the learning that they were getting was so important to them.
The connection with them was immediate; they were warm, engaging and eager. We went to the Mystics locker room after the game where they got to meet the players and they even did their cheer for them. I thought it was great, perhaps better appreciated if the Mystics had won, but nonetheless the players were gracious as always and the Fever too said hello and took some photos.
Come to Lebanon they said… SURE…..I gave them my email to keep in touch and let them know we would be available for any follow-up questions they may have had. Tony Khalil, the leader of the group appeared in my inbox not too long after their trip. He was following the W and it was great to be in touch with him.
The power of the ball, the multi-cultural ball had transcended once again. Did I foresee what was to happen, NO, but you hope on some level that the glancing connection that you know has impact can develop further and that it did when the SportsUnited office put together a diplomatic Sports Envoy program to Lebanon and I was invited to attend was remarkable.
By this time Tony and I had become email pals but I wanted to surprise him and did not tell him that I would be coming to his country. We were to be the FIRST sports mission to enter Lebanon as part of this program and I could not have been more proud and excited.
I was not nervous, although my kids voiced their concerns, until I found out that it was armoured vehicles that would be picking us up. It gave me pause for a moment but we were committed. Committed to be part of this incredible program created by the US State Department to help further our mission of grass roots diplomacy and what better language to use than the universal language of sports. Utilizing the power of the ball to help find common ground and fulfill the program’s name of SportsUnitedhas been a successful story in several other countries.
The fact that Lebanon is a country that loves the game of basketball made it that much more fun. Reuniting with our visiting coaches -- in particular Tony, Pierre and Talar -- was phenomenal. Their leadership and enthusiasm extended to the hundreds of kids we got to interact with and I only hope that we taught them as much as they taught us.
Being with Ebony Hoffman of the Fever and if you haven’t read her blog you should as she details much of our day to day and Rolando Blackman, who was an amazing, energetic teacher and traveling companion, dimensionalized the concept of teamwork.
I always believe in the possible, it’s a good skill to have working in the WNBA, so I should not have been surprised to realize the possibilities that have arisen from meeting an enthusiastic group of coaches visiting from a foreign land and the life changing relationships and opportunities we have engaged in with each other. And yet, I am. It was a simple request from Tony, come to Lebanon, we did, and from that visit our journey will continue.
Will write again about the wonderful people and especially young women I met along the way.
