Colin Ulle can’t wait to make that first basket on the public basketball court he dreamed into reality.
“The best part will be to shoot on it. My friends are excited to play on it, too,” said Ulle, a Grade 11 Brookswood Secondary student.
Ulle’s hoop dream to put a full-sized outdoor basketball court at the school is becoming a reality, thanks to a lot of hard work on his part and the massive generosity of the Brookswood community.
Around $4,200 was raised at the Artful Dodger on Saturday, May 6. Colin’s dad, Brian Ulle, organized the burger and beer evening, which included a 50/50 and toonie toss.
“Brookswood is a pretty special community. Proud to be part of it,” said Brian.
A Gofundme page that Colin started had raised $1,655 of its $20,000 goal. But then, an anonymous donor “stepped up massively … getting us over half way to making the court a reality.”
Now they are less than $4,000 away from their goal.
Ulle envisions a full-sized regulation court in an unused area across from the playing fields that is pretty level already.
The idea came to the Grade 11 student back in September.
It was during his spare block, when Ulle — who plays on the senior boys basketball team — wanted to go to the gym to shoot some hoops. But with the gym booked for classes, there was no court for him to work on his shot.
It got him thinking, and soon Ulle developed a plan to build a full-sized outdoor basketball court at the school.
“There are really no outdoor court options in the community, and I just wanted somewhere to play,” he said.
“And this would give those in the community somewhere to play.”
There is one outdoor court option at East Brookswood Park, as well as basketball hoops at the various elementary schools in the area.
So those looking to play basketball at a proper court either have to drive elsewhere or pay for drop-in at a community centre.
Jyoti Pawar, Ulle’s coach at Brookswood, agrees the court would be beneficial.
“We have so many kids who want to shoot hoops,” he said. “This court will be used all the time.”
Working with the administration at Brookswood Secondary, Ulle’s plan gained traction and got the necessary approvals.
“For a Grade 11 kid, it is quite amazing,” said Brookswood vice-principal Jeff Keen.
Colin worked with his dad, a Township firefighter, and they spoke with the owner of Pioneer Paving, a local company.
“I went to school with the owner’s daughter so that was a great fit,” said Colin. Because of the large donation they received, they are now going to be able to put on a protective coating that will allow the court to last longer.
He is still working on the costs of the actual hoops, given the quote they had was in American dollars.
Colin is hoping to take that first shot, play that first game of b-ball, at the end of August.
“We should be able to start work on it by June,” he said.