Amputees looking to play standup basketball games now have the chance with the launching of the StandUp Amputee Basketball League at the Virginia G. Piper Sports & Fitness Center for Persons with Disabilities (SpoFit), a program of Arizona Bridge to Independent Living (ABIL). SpoFit is located at 5031 E. Washington, St. at the Disability Empowerment Center.
The league is sponsored by Touchstone Rehabilitation with support from the D Banks Foundation. Founder David Banks, an above-the-knee amputee of 15 years, developed the organization to “empower amputees and to provide aid in obtaining quality prosthetics to those in financial need.”
Games will be played Wednesdays beginning Oct. 15 from 6:30-9 p.m. Basketball is free for SpoFit members. Adult non-members will be sponsored on alternating weeks by Touchstone Rehabilitation and D Banks Foundation. Non-amputees also are welcome to participate.
SpoFit Vice President and General Manager Gus LaZear said the goal of StandUp Amputee Basketball League organizers “is to have enough players to develop a competitive league of individuals who want not only to play ball but to give back to the community and empower others to live without limits.”
“It’s not just about empowering those with disabilities but also about empowering people in general to realize that anything can be achieved with determination and will,” Banks added.
To enroll or for more information, contact LaZear at gusl@abil.org or Banks at david@dbanksfoundation.org or visit www.spofit.org.
