BRIGHT LIGHT TO GREATNESS – UNTs’ Hall of Famer Willie Davis and Former MBK White House Ally Kyev Tatum Team Up To Bring Association of Midnight Basketball to Fort Worth To Help Improve Education and Employment Outcomes of Innercity Males between the Ages of 13 to 25.
CONTACT: Kyev Tatum, 817-966-7625, kptatum1@gmail.com,
FORT WORTH, TEXAS – Two former UNT athletes have teamed up in Fort Worth to help address the chronic unemployment of young males living in the inner city.
Willie Davis and Kyev Tatum are not strangers to tackling challenging situations head on. In fact both relish the opportunity to launch the Fort Worth Association of Midnight Basketball League and Program to help young people ages 13 to 25 (https://www.amblp.org/chapters/ft-worth-texas/).
“The University of North Texas prepared us to become leaders in the community. Time and experience has provided us with the wisdom to make a difference in the lives of young people. We are excited about the opportunity and look forward to helping our babies get better,” says Tatum, a former member of the Mean Green Football Team from 87-89. A 1991 graduate of the College of Public Affairs and Community Service (PACS), Kyev was appointed as a 2014 White House Ally for President Barack Obama’s My Brother’s Keeper Community Challenge.
Both leaders are excited to meet others interested in joining the team and will begin their speaking tour throughout North Texas in September in order to help garner support for the program.
The president of the Dallas Chapter of the National Basketball Retired Players Association, Davis has agreed to lend his support towards developing educational programs for the Fort Worth Association of Midnight Basketball by encouraging former NBA/WNBA players to serve as Life Coaches for young people between the ages of 13 to 25.
“Association of Midnight Basketball is a great prevention and intervention program and Kyev and I are glad to partner with leaders in Fort Worth to make sure children receive the proper supportive services,” says, Willie Davis, who also played professionally in the original ABA.
According to GoMeanGreen.Com, Willie Davis joined the North Texas basketball team in 1965. A member of the 1,000 Point Club for completing 1,166 shots in his North Texas career, Davis was called a “colossal presence” on the court for his size (6’8″ and 240 lbs).
He was named Sophomore of the Year in the Missouri Valley Conference and voted to the All-Conference first team that season. He earned Honorable Mention All-Conference his last two years.
Davis was named to the North Texas Hall of Fame in 1996.
An award winning community advocate, Tatum sees this program as a unique opportunity to build a safety net to reach the most unhealthy and vulnerable young people that have fallen through the cracks.
“We understand basketball is a valuable tool to help motivate our young folks, however the treatment health and wellness services we offer through our clearinghouse best practices in treatment, prevention and intervention strategies is what is going to help get our brothers on the bottom and our babies back on base,” says, Tatum, lead strategist for the initiative.
For more information on how you can become apart of this new prevention, intervention and treatment program, contact Tatum at 817-966-7625 or kptatum1@gmail.com
Association of Association of Midnight Basketball: www.Association of Midnight Basketball.com
Dallas Retired Players: http://www.legendsofbasketball.com/chapters/dallas/president/
White House My Brother’s Keeper: https://northtexan.unt.edu/content/my-brothers-keeper
Clearinghouse Model: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/colorado-apprenticeship-program-turns-factory-floor-classroom/
Retired NBA Players: https://news.heart.org/deaths-prompt-heart-screenings-for-former-nba-players/
Willie Davis: http://www.legendsofbasketball.com/nbrpa-players-take-part-in-dallas-heart-screenings-hosted-by-nbpa/