Cal Bruton had a tough upbringing. His father was murdered when he was young, leaving his pregnant mother to raise him and his siblings. Basketball changed his life. And through basketball, he teaches young people the importance of teamwork, discipline, equality, organisation, and belonging.
"You've got to give kids a chance to believe and hope, and through our Standing Tall program this is going to provide that vehicle,” he said.
“I've got a little saying called 'swag', you know, you've got to put the swag in the bag. We teach kids that they have to have a skill set, a work ethic, an aptitude for learning and to set some goals."
The Charity Bounce program, run by the youth organisation Stand Tall, has three main components: developing relationships with young people, helping them in finding employment or education, and of course, basketball.
"You've got to give kids a chance to believe and hope, and through our Standing Tall program this is going to provide that vehicle”
Mr Carfino said that basketball got him through university, and to where he is today. He enjoys working with kids and young people within the Charity Bounce program.
“This program right here gives kids the pathway to success and the hardest thing to do is have a plan. If you don’t know where to start, then the most difficult thing is to reach those goals,” he said.
But, as an ex-teacher, Charity Bounce’s Program Manager Cain Slater said that it’s not just about basketball.
“We’ve got a different approach to how we do things, it’s not just about basketball programs or about art programs, our main focus is education and about getting youth employed,” he said.
“We are always looking to expose young people to positive role models and activities via food and basketball to reach out to the community.”
