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Ambassadors spread positive message
The Harlem Ambassadors have descended upon McCook with their anti-drug, pro-school message and will spend two days spreading the word.
The Ambassadors arrived Thursday for their Saturday night basketball game and have a full schedule on their only stop in Nebraska.
The six players visited with McCook elementary students this morning and were scheduled to stop by St. Patrick School this afternoon. Saturday morning will be spent at the Ed Thomas YMCA in McCook, with the players working out and spending more time with local children.
Saturday evening is the featured event, a basketball game between the Harlem Ambassadors and the McCookies. The game begins at the McCook High School gym at 6:30 p.m. with tickets $8 at the door.
The Harlem Ambassadors features young men and women who have either finished college or are nearing college graduation. The team visiting McCook is a newly-formed regional group, designed to travel just in the United States, which features veteran players and the newly initiated. The Harlem Ambassadors also feature an international team for traveling overseas.
Team captain Alonzo Barkley joined the organization in August 2002 and will tour with the group until June. As the only married member of the team, Barkley has already graduated from the University of Alabama-Huntsville.
He said he stands fully behind the message of the organization -- stay in school and stay away from drugs. Two other members of the team have one semester left before graduating.
Alicia Adderly, who will graduate from Colorado State University in Ft. Collins and plans to attend law school, said the Harlem Ambassadors "just stand for a lot."
Ethnie Stubbs will graduate from St. Mary's College in California.
Chante Gifford, who attends Cal State-Fullerton, said she enjoys the touring and the organization and has formed strong, good friendships with the other players.
The other members of the team include Harold Russell of Lake Erie College and Claude Davis from Arkansas State. Davis had not yet made it to McCook on Friday, taking the opportunity to spend time with family in Alliance.
McCook Chamber of Commerce Director Marie Owen said the the chamber is sponsoring the event because of the positive message. "With so many pro players, you see them promoting anti-drugs, anti-alcohol, but then you see them on the 6 o'clock news," she said. "As a chamber, we like seeing these young men and women practice what they are preaching."
She added, "They believe what they are saying and we (the chamber) want a positive impact on the kids."
Barkley noted that the game is a very family-oriented show. The Ambassadors involve the crowds and regularly pull kids in from the audience. "We're playing the game for the community," he said.