Through collaborative efforts with local school districts, the Hayward Area Recreation & Park District (HARD) Youth Basketball League has brought hope to elementary and middle school kids desperate for basketball activity.

“[Local] elementary schools and middle schools have been greatly helped by this program because without this league, districts wouldn’t have been able to keep basketball programs running,” said Jeff Sherman, an athletic director at King Middle School in Hayward.

As budget cuts have accrued over the past few years, the Hayward, San Leandro, and Castro Valley Unified School Districts have struggled to preserve their respective basketball programs at the elementary and middle school grade levels.

However, through team fundraising, school booster clubs, and other communal endeavors, the HARD Youth Basketball League has established a school-based program that serves over 400 kids locally.

“Our goal is to sustain a working relationship between schools and parks in order to provide sports for kids and give them a low-cost opportunity to participate in a team sport,” said HARD Recreation Coordinator Mike Maine, who has been a part of the league since 1996.
Originally, players were charged a minimum $50 fee, which cost each team an estimated $600 flat rate for league participation. But, after recommended revisions by the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and coaches, the league has reduced fees to $450 per team.

As a result of fee revisions, the league now features 36 boys and girls basketball teams representative of three different divisions: a fifth to sixth grade division, and seventh to eighth graders competing in divisions of their own.

Also, each player who dresses for a game must play at least one quarter of basketball, according to Maine.

Games are held every Saturday morning at three reputable gyms in the city of Hayward, including Sunset High School, Matt Jimenez Community Center and Conley-Caraballo High School.

Aside from providing low-cost competitive basketball and teaching kids’ fundamentals of the game, the league also stresses the importance of education.

“A lot of the kids from our program go on to play high school basketball because they learn the importance of doing well in school,” said Rick Solis, a recreation coordinator and game official of the league for 20 years. “In our program we expect our kids to be model athletes on the court and model students in the classroom.”

This philosophy has fared well for the league as some of their former players have gone on to have successful basketball careers, such as Diamon Simpson at St. Mary’s College, Johnnie Bryant at University of Utah and Jared Walker at Hayward High School.

In addition to the successes of former players, some players have made great contributions to the HARD Youth Basketball League as dedicated employees.

“The youth league helped me discover my love for the game and also my desire to give back to the community,” said Anthony Solis, who played in the league from 1991 to 1993 and is now a game official for the league. “I want to ensure that future generations would be able to have the same experience I had or even better.”

Though very few youth prolong their basketball careers beyond the courts of the HARD youth league, the outcome of their experiences brings back positive memories.

“I was involved in CYO basketball for my church and also played at the Hayward YMCA, but none of them were as fun as playing for the HARD youth league and representing my school against other schools,” said Solis.