Bring It In - Israel
 
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December 6th, Netanya, Israel, Bring It In - Israel Fellows joined players from Barak Netanya to hold a special Hannukah Clinic for children from Rav Cook after school program. Children were very excited to meet Netanya players and Bring It In - Israel coaches from North America. Barak Netanya brought the children basketballs and official team shirts. There were big smiles all around as the children had the opportunity to get their pictures taken with players.
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The excitement and energy continued into the practice. Children learned the names of the lines of the court in English and had the opportunity to stretch in English with Barak Netanya player Jacob Colburn. Bring It In - Israel Fellow Chava Dashevsky was a star Hebrew translator. Chava lead the children through ball handling drills, relay races, and other team building games. The practice ended with the hands in cheer "We are"... "Barak Netanya." The children's faces shined with pride and enjoyment.
Click here to see more pictures.
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November 19th, at Hand in Hand School in Jerusalem, Bring It In - Israel Winter Fellows used games and drills from the Bring It In - Israel curriculum to run a joint practice for 2nd and 3rd grade Arab and Jewish children from Beit Safafa and Katamon. The children are part of PeacePlayers International's (PPI) program that uses basketball to unite and educate Arab and Jewish children and their communities. The 2nd and 3rd graders, lovingly called "Mini's" by the PPI staff, were meeting for the second time. Bring It In - Israel Fellows focused on honing their skills coaching with enthusiasm and excitement. PPI Joint practices, or Twinnings, require a high level of energy and excitement from the coaches to ensure that the children have a positive experience. Similarly, Fellow lead Israel sports Days in Israel and back home in North America are designed to be packed full of energy and excitement. Over the course of the Fellowship, coaches have gained the skills and coaching techniques to engage children and get them excited. The PPI joint practice was filled with High Fives, cheering, and a lot of laughter.

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According to Bring It In - Israel Head Coach David Lasday, "Research shows that people learn more, and connect more with each other, in a high energy atmosphere. The Fellows have done a great job of taking the positive energy building coaching techniques we taught them and really making them their own."

PPI players left the practice excited for future PPI activities. Fellows left having connected to another important part of Israeli society. Fellow Judah Batist from Aardvark Israel said "This was a cool and unique experience, it was great to see the Arab and Jewish children cheering each other on, and playing together."

Click here for a link to PPI's blog post about the event.


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This blog post is by Bring It In - Israel Winter Fellow Gabi P. Remz.
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Gabi with basketball cheering on the players
Large lines to play in video game competitions. A large clown performing in bright green sequences. An intense futsal match. And a Bring It In- Israel basketball clinic, featuring an eclectic mix of Jewish and Arab players, and American and Canadian coaches.

The air was electric on a humid Monday night in Jaffo, where the Bnei Brit Community Center was celebrating it’s reopening after significant renovations. With tons of boisterous kids attending the event, it was an ideal opportunity for the Bring It In- Israel team to organize an activity.
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Throughout the night, more than fifteen kids participated in a variety of basketball related activities, from shooting competitions to games of keep-away to defensive slides. Though some of the activities were quite challenging, the kids’ energy levels and enthusiasm remained high, leading to a tremendously successful night of basketball. The coaches—all of whom were leading their first clinic—were able to put some of their new Hebrew sports vocabulary into good use, and the children were extremely receptive to the coaches’ tips and advice.

After the organized practice session, there was some time for an open shoot around, during which several of the young players challenged coaches to one on one match-ups, providing both important experience and laughter for both sides. The end of a very successful clinic early on in the winter fellowship has left the coaches very excited
for the experiences to come.

To see more pictures from the day click here.
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Barak Netanya PF Eliran Gueta and Bring It In - Israel Head Coach David Lasday
On Thursday November 18th, Bring It In - Israel Winter Fellows joined forces with players from Israeli men's professional team Barak Netanya to run a basketball education day for children from after school programs (moadoniote) in Netanya. The program focused on teaching the children basketball fundamentals, English sports vocabulary, and life skills such as listening, communication, and teamwork. The day served as a Mifgash (cultural exchange) between Bring It In - Israel Fellows and the Israeli children and players. Bring It In - Israel Winter Fellows Adina Weinberg, Jacob Walker, and Judah Batist from Aardvark Israel, teamed up with Barak Netanya players Eliran Gueta (Power Forward) and David Asnte (Guard).

Bring It In - Israel Fellows utilized the in field training day to hone their Hebrew sports vocabulary, and to learn how to work together with Israelis. Bring It In - Israel looks forward to run more sports days with Barak Netanya over Hannukah. Click on the album below to see more pictures from the day.  
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Friday September 8th, Bring It In - Israel Head Coach David Lasday teamed up with Michael Vaughan-Cherubin to run a basketball coaches clinic for a visiting delegation of youth basketball coaches from Australia. The Australian coaches were brought over on a cultural exchange program run by SportsUnited. Through this exciting initiative, selected youth athletes and coaches are brought to the U.S. to learn about sports in America through programs that include exposure to athletics in the American educational system, technical sports training, sports management, disability training, and exposure to valuable U.S. sports contacts. They then are encouraged to return home to conduct in-country clinics for youth with their newly learned skills.

According to Bring It In - Israel Head Coach David Lasday "SportsUnited is a very impressive program. Sport is an invaluable tool as a means by which cultural exchange can take place." 
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Bring It In - Israel Head Coach David Lasday was invited by Maccabi Haifa to attend their game vs the New Jersey Nets on Sunday, October 10th, at the Prudential Center in Newark. Maccabi Haifa is a team with great tradition, while also being at the forefront of sports marketing. Under the leadership of owner Jeffrey Rosen, Maccabi Haifa is leading the way in Israeli sports. Maccabi Haifa is the only international basketball team to have its own TV magazine show in the US, "Inside Israeli Basketball." To watch inside Israeli basketball online, visit www.insideisraelibasketball.com.

Maccabi Haifa kept the score close until the New Jersey Nets broke open the game in the third quarter. According to Head Coach David Lasday, "Haifa has an exciting team this year, Israeli native Avi Ben-Chimol, and US stars Marco Killingsworth and Frank Robinson were a lot of fun to watch." The Nets won by a final score of 108 - 70.

Maccabi Haifa's "Haifa Hoops for Kids" charity program, a joint initiative with the United Jewish Communities of MetroWest New Jersey, has brought over 4,500 underprivileged and special needs children in northern Israel to a Maccabi game in the last two years. To learn how you can join the cause click here. 

A big thank you to Owner Jeffrey Rosen and Director of Marketing Andrew Wilson for inviting us.
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