RUMSON – The 11th annual Hoops for Horizons 3-on-3 basketball tournament will be held at Rumson Country Day School on March 8-9 to benefit the Horizons Student Enrichment Program.
This year the annual charity event has been named in honor of Albert E. Martin, Jr., the beloved Red Bank Regional High School Senior who died suddenly in December. A Horizons graduate, Albert returned each year to play in the hoops tournament working the court with his sure-handed basketball skills and easy smile.
Albert spent three summers from grades 6-8 in the Horizons program. His mother, Traci Dixon, said, “Albert loved Hoops, loved Horizons and loved life.”
Lore MacDonald, Horizons Rumson founder and past board president, recalled, “Albert was the kind of child every school would want in their community. He was affable and always smiling. He appealed to every person from every walk of life – just an amazing kid.”
All boys and girls, grade 5 and up, are welcome to participate in the Albert E. Martin, Jr. Memorial Hoops for Horizons tournament. The competition begins at 3:30 p.m. March 8 with the fifth-grade division, followed by the high school/ adults under-29 bracket in the early evening. The event will conclude the next day with the middle school and adults 30-plus divisions. There will be prizes for winning teams, chance auctions, a bake sale and snacks for purchase with all money raised to benefit Horizons’ 2013 summer program and the 100-plus local students who attend.
Horizons is an award-winning academic and recreational summer enrichment program whose mission is to promote the potential of children primarily from Red Bank in K-8th grade, who are living in low income circumstances. The Horizons program emphasizes math, reading, science, the arts, intramural sports and swimming, nutritious meals, as well as social growth. Horizons is committed to the development of the whole child through experiences that enhance self-esteem, foster awareness of community responsibility, build problem-solving skills and encourage a lifelong interest in learning.
Paul Campanella, Rumson Country Day School athletics director and Albert E. Martin, Jr. Hoops for Horizons Tournament coordinator, said, “We’re inviting everyone in the community to come out and play in Albert’s memory. He joined us every March for the past five years because Horizons was a program that made a difference in his life. He wanted to share that experience with other kids.”
Horizons welcomes all friends and supporters to this fun-filled event. Additional information is available by contacting Horizons Executive Director Lori Hohenleitner at horizonsed@gmail.com. Registration and donation information also can be found at www.rcds.org/horizons.
