Someone. Unknown, but Important
At least a million other places he’d rather be, that much was obvious.
He was a big kid, sitting alone, away from the others, slouched in a chair. Even so, towering over the small group of adults sitting nearby.
Allison, Street2Street’s Communications Manager and my daughter, noticed him immediately. She noticed how out of place he seemed—quiet, reserved, a teenager in a room full of people twice or triple his age. He fiddled with his phone, glancing around the room now and then, but his mind clearly wasn’t on this gathering—a retirement party—he’d been compelled to attend.
Allison walked over and leaned in, determined to break the ice. “Are you having fun?” she asked, offering a friendly smile. His eyes lifted from the phone, meeting hers briefly before he let out a sigh. He gave a half-nod, but his heart wasn’t in it. How much fun could a seventeen-year-old have at a retirement party?
She tried another angle. “You play basketball?”
This time, his face lit up. His shoulders lifted, eyes brightened, and he sat up straighter. “Of course!” he said, suddenly energized, and the conversation was off to the races.
Emmett was from Brooklyn. He told Allison how he and his friends had planned to sign up for a basketball tournament the next day, but he’d just found out that registration had closed.
“Any chance it’s a Street2Street tournament?” Allison asked. Emmett’s eyes widened in amazement. "Yes! How do you know Street2Street?"
And then—in something akin to a miracle for the previously bored-to-tears boy at the boring adult’s party—Allison whipped out her phone, opened the registration app, overrode the “tournament full” setting, and registered Emmett and his buddies. Suddenly, he was in, thanks to this incredible chance encounter with someone who saw him alone. Someone who found a way to engage him. Someone who had the power to make a difference.
Emmett was at the tournament the next day. He showed up early and stayed late, not just that day, but for every Street2Street tournament for the rest of the summer.
He and his team members became bedrock Street2Street participants this summer, winning championships and character awards, and loudly cheering and encouraging other teams and players. Emmett’s story is at the heart of what Street2Street is all about: kids who need a place to belong, who need an opportunity, find it here.
Many of the kids we serve come from tough backgrounds—some have had run-ins with gangs, drugs, or the criminal justice system. But just as often, we meet kids like Emmett—good kids who simply need an opportunity, and a space where they can thrive.
Long after the final whistle at each event, Emmett and his friends would stay to help clean the courts, load the Street2Street van, then head to their jobs—some at family restaurants, others at local corner stores. They’re the type of kids who understand hard work, who know what it takes to earn a dollar.
It’s not lost on them that Street2Street is completely free for them, from the jerseys and trophies to the referees and food. Free for them, but not free.
They know that it’s possible because someone saw them alone. Someone—unknown, but important—who cared, and gave. Someone who found a way to engage them. Someone with the power to make a difference.
