As the LeBron James Family Foundation makes its monthly gift-giving visits to honor deserving student-athletes, few recipients have traveled farther than the North High School track team to earn recognition.
In the past decade, educators have looked for unique ways to connect with an increasing immigrant population as the track team’s roster gradually dwindled into the single digits.
Last year, assistant coach Laddie Fair, a 2009 North graduate, cobbled together an outdoor-only team incapable of competing in all events with only four boys. Fair spent three hours meticulously blackening out “lady” on used uniforms so 23 more boys, recruited over the course of the year, had something to wear.
The boys and girls carried the program from hard times to a third-place finish in the City Series.
On Friday, the team was rewarded with a day-before-Christmas-break giveaway of all things track, from hooded sweatshirts to skintight compression shorts.
The unexpected gifts from the foundation left the team ticking away the days until training resumes in March.
“I just wanna say we’re taking city this year, but our biggest goal is to win states as a team,” said a confident Dominic Jones, 16. The wrestler was asked to run last year by assistant track coach Shermaine Meadows, another North alumni.
After reviving indoor events this year, Fair hopes to field 60 runners, jumpers and throwers in the spring, like shot put enthusiast Nyesha Holmes, a senior at North inspired to join the team last year by a character in a Fat Albert movie.
Holmes and her teammates never expected to attract the attention of NBA star LeBron James or his foundation. As the charitable organization unloaded the uniforms and aired a video of previous giveaways — cheerleader gear at Garfield, jackets for soccer coaches district wide and football equipment for Kenmore — social media blew up with gratitude and excitement.
“I just want to say thank you, honestly,” Holmes said hours later after the surprise assembly.
With caring coaches and high-profile recognition, the team deserves everything it got, said Principal Rachel Tecca and North Athletics Director Carrie Stewart.
“What the LeBron James Family Foundation said to the kids this morning is very in line with the foundation’s message of ‘nothing is given, everything is earned,’ ” Tecca said.
“The kids saw the uniforms,” Stewart said of some non-athletes in the crowd, “and they want to wear them.”
Doug Livingston can be reached at 330-996-3792 or dlivingston@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow on Twitter: @DougLivingstonABJ.
