The before and after picture speaks for itself. In less than four short months my nephew went from a bullied depressed overweight 6th grader to a confident happy slim 6th grader. He is tall for elementary school and the other children would call him names and bully him. Now he has friends and something to look forward to each day. His health has improved so much and he is almost asthma free. He does his school work and chores without an argument and even looks for other ways to help! The coaches are great and easy to talk to. It is also called OGP select or Open Gym Premier Select. They go to basketball 3 nights a week. Which is practice twice a week and a skills day on Monday. Then they have games about every other weekend which they play with other teams from LA and OC. And all the team members will get a chance to play, not just the best players. Since my nephew is new to basketball this was very important to us. And even if they lose a game it is a positive experience for them. They shake the other teams hand and say good game etc.. OCP promotes being tough and positive and they stress that winning and losing are both great learning and important experiences. In this age of the internet people can be so mean and the children mimic this in school and become real verbal bullies. It is up to us to provide our children the opportunity and support to learn how to take a punch and getup just like in the movie Rocky. The practices give them the skill set but the weekend games provide the opportunity to be a survivor which will enable them to be true champions!

Wilbert Rickman school High

I play basketball on a team we play in riverside Washington