Benjamin Morrison is a basketball enthusiast. The physical education teacher wants to pass on this passion to young people at Claudette-Bradshaw school in Moncton. Better yet, he wants to use football as an integration tool for newcomers. And the icing on the cake is that its coaches are all young girls.
The teacher from Saint-Jean not only wants to establish the culture of basketball among young people from first to fifth grade, he also wants to break down all kinds of barriers.
During the very first training session, he hoped to attract around twenty young people. More than twice as many came.
There were boys and girls of all origins and all age groups.
They all had one thing in common: they had a round ball in their hands and a big smile on their faces.
“I wanted to create this club because we have a lot of newcomers. I thought it would be a good idea to give students the chance to play my favorite sport. When immigrants arrive in Canada, they are truly isolated. By playing sports, they have the chance to find new friends,” explains the one who runs the regional women’s club 506-Shamrock (S-14).
The teacher has a great track record as a basketball coach.
He was the instructor of the leadership class at the Raptors annual basketball academy in Toronto.
Ben Morrison has also managed several teams on behalf of Basketball New Brunswick, in addition to creating a men’s team (12th grade) at Samuel-de-Champlain school, in Saint-Jean.
His interest in newcomers comes from his previous career as an immigration officer for the New Brunswick government.
“I worked a lot with newcomers and international students, and when I talked with them, it was always the same theme. They feel isolated when they arrive here. If they don’t feel comfortable in New Brunswick, there’s a good chance they’ll go elsewhere.”
As soon as he set up his project, it was clear that he wanted to offer young girls the chance to develop their skills as a coach.
“There aren’t many opportunities for girls to become coaches and that’s not normal. I want my daughters to be able to have great experiences.”
He therefore recruited seven of his players, namely Charley Baisley, Georgia Pothier, Caitlyn Enriquez, Victoria Gordon, Ava Peck, Tori-May Paul and Chloé Morrisson.
“I think it can give them confidence and it will be something to add to their resume,” says the teacher.
It is possible that he will also extend an invitation to young people in grades 6 to 9 in the coming months in order to expand his club.
“I find that there are many good athletes in French-speaking schools, whether in soccer, ringette, hockey or basketball. They have very good foundations for several different sports.”
Great enthusiasm
Aspiring female coaches take their role very seriously. They are all football enthusiasts.
This is the case for Ava Peck
“I wanted to become a coach because I love basketball and also children,” she explains.
“I want to encourage young people to play basketball. There are good players in the group,” continues his colleague Georgia Pothier.
Chloé Morrison wants to prove that women can lead teams as effectively as their male colleagues.
“I want to show that girls can be good coaches, even if it’s a sport that is mainly dominated by guys,” she emphasizes.
With such commitment, basketball is likely to progress quickly at Claudette-Bradshaw school.
