Video: ‘Bows visit Next Step Shelter

The Hawaii basketball team made the most of another opportunity to give back to the community on Tuesday evening.

UH, which recently read to children at Waikiki Elementary under new coach Eran Ganot, paid a visit to the Next Step Shelter for the homeless near the Kakaako Waterfront.

With homeless sweeps in Kakaako and other areas getting a lot of attention lately, it was an especially meaningful time to go. The entire team was present.

{Note: Photo gallery at the bottom}

“They were gracious enough to show us around,” Ganot said. “Number one, it’s about giving back. Number two, it’s about educating our guys.

“At the end of the day, if you have the opportunity to influence lives in a positive way, you’ve got to take advantage of that. And we have the opportunity to do that.”

The Rainbows ran some playful drills with a few dozen of the shelter’s children (mostly in the 4-to-6 age range) then helped serve food to Next Step’s more than 200 homeless.

“I think it was awesome,” said UH newcomer Sai Tummala, an Arizona State transfer with a background in pre-med. “It’s a great opportunity when you can serve other people and especially people that are homeless. It’s a real problem here from what I’ve understood so far. Just having an opportunity to give back to them in any opportunity that we had, that was awesome.”

Third-year guard Niko Filipovich was among the players who hoisted kids on their shoulders so they could try dunking on a short portable hoop. He was clearly into the experience.

“Yeah, definitely, instilling some joy into their life,” Filipovich said. “It’s all anybody can ask for, just being happy. … It was a great thing to a be a part of besides basketball.”

UH donated about 20 basketballs and also helped assemble a hoop that was in storage at the shelter.

Performance analyst/director of operations Jamie Smith helped arrange the visit with shelter coordinator Kapua Tani.

The shelter warehouse, located at Pier 1 across Ala Moana Boulevard from the Restaurant Row area (adjacent to the UH medical school), is open daily from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 a.m. In the morning, the single inhabitants and families alike must clear out and return the next night, except on weekends where they can stay all day. They are allowed to take shelter there for two years, during which time they are encouraged to find housing and get back on their feet.

To support those at Next Step, you can get info about donating supplies here.

—————

Meanwhile, teams nationwide are rapidly nearing the start of full practices on Oct. 2. UH has continued with its conditioning and skills workouts to try to get ready for that point.

Point guards Roderick Bobbitt and Dyrbe Enos have had to work their way back slowly from broken jaws, limiting their participation, but Ganot said the team is expected to be an overall healthy group by the time of those full sessions.

“You can sense it’s coming around the corner,” Ganot said. “Obviously the first sense of excitement is when school starts and the students are around, and then as the weather starts to change a little bit, as you can tell it’s late September, you always know it’s around the corner. So, the guys are very well aware of where they’re at and where they’re headed. Next Friday, we start first practice. Three weeks from this Friday, we play our first game. We play our first scrimmage before you know it. It’s quick, and that’s what we’re trying to preach to our guys. The sense of urgency should always be there, but you know it’s coming on even stronger every week.”

———————