Seattle has been synonymous with basketball since the late 70’s when the Supersonics won their first and only NBA championship. The city has produced dozens of NBA professionals over the past, but there’s a basketball program in Seattle that is working to produce better men
through basketball on Sundays at Rainier Community Center.
Seattle Parks & Recreation wanted a solution to a problem in their adult programming: Why isn’t there a place for adult men to play basketball on weekends? The solution was to bring in
Joseph Jessie, founder of Love 2 Hoop and a person who grew up in the Seattle basketball scene. Out of this partnership The Run Seattle was born.
Having previous experience working in nightlife, Jessie approached The Run the same way he would the opening of a new nightclub. Starting at Franklin High School in late 2022, a small group of fifteen players, live music courtesy of DJ DDoxx, and videographer Anthony Body to capture the action grew into 40-50 guys every week.
The Run has attracted some of the best college and high school players the area has to offer, some coming from as far as Olympia to play. But it’s also brought men reacclimating to society after being released from prison. Men who have lost family members, children, spouses, jobs, and homes. What appears as an open gym run to attendees is really a community of men when you look closer. When you talk to players who have participated since the Franklin days, they
speak about The Run the same way you would any other support group.
Kadeem Stewart, a prominent figure in the Seattle basketball scene, and a younger sibling of Rodrick and Lodrick Stewart remembers his younger days at Rainier Community Center and what it meant to his basketball growth.
“I’ve always been for the community, but to be apart of my own childhood neighborhood where many legends came through is an honor,” says Stewart. “(It’s) not just about basketball it’s about coming together and understanding you’re not alone and always
have a place you can call home.”
Having spaces like this for men both young and old is so important, as identified by the men who continue to come through the halls of Rainier Community Center every Sunday. All parties involved in creating The Run knew there was a level of importance for this program, but they underestimated how important it was going to be to so many. “I knew that we had something people liked because the numbers kept growing, but I didn’t understand what The Run meant to them. I knew they were getting a good run in, but the mental health part of it is what impacted me the most,” says Jessie.
Unfortunately, one of the biggest issues The Run faces is funding through Seattle Parks & Recreation. Soley relying on the funding and gym access it receives from Seattle Parks, if there isn’t room in the budget the program gets put on hold, along with he lives of so many men who use The Run as a place of refuge. The program is set to end April 2024 as of today, with the hopes of finding funding to keep it running.
“I’ve been able to interact with people I probably would have never interacted with. I’ve gotten to build friendships and network in ways I never have and it’s all due to The Run,” says Marvin Charles, a player from The Run.
The assumption is that once a young man turns eighteen, he is left to learn how to handle the world on their own. We have lost the ability for older generations to reach back to younger generations to share the tips and tools they have used to get ahead in life. The Run is a place where the common language spoken is basketball, and any lessons that can be taught on the court will hopefully translate over into life. There are so many men in Washington state who
need these lessons, and luckily there is a place for them to come to every week.
