From NUSEA Executive Director Tim Wyant January 20, 2015
On
behalf of the National Urban Squash + Education Association and all of
our member programs, I would like to thank everyone who helped make
Urban Squash's 20th Anniversary Celebration this past weekend such a
wonderful success. Over 1,250 people, including students, alumni,
staff, and supporters, participated in the three-day event, and a
record $2 million was raised for urban squash. Attendees came from
across the country as well as Canada, Colombia, England, Ireland,
India, and Zimbabwe. Current and former world #1s Nicol David, Nick
Matthew, Peter Nicol, and Natalie Grainger were among the luminaries in
attendance.
First Lady Michelle Obama sent her congratulations from The White
House. Speaking in a video that was shown to the more than 800 guests
at Saturday night's gala dinner in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, she
recalled her 2012 visit to SquashSmarts in North Philadelphia and
saluted our students and alumni for their hard work and commitment to
their education. "My husband and I are so proud of you, and we're so
grateful for the outstanding work of the urban squash movement and
NUSEA," the First Lady said.
Over the course of the three days, nearly 400 urban squashers from 15
cities competed in the Urban Team Nationals, which was jointly hosted
by the University Club in Midtown Manhattan, StreetSquash in Harlem,
and CitySquash in the Bronx. San Diego's Access Youth Academy prevailed
in one division, the Bronx's CitySquash earned three titles, and New
Haven's Squash Haven won the remaining four draws. For more information
about the tournament, click here.
In the coming days we will share photos and videos from the weekend,
but for now we want to thank you for an extraordinary three days. It
was a fitting tribute to the past two decades, and we are grateful that
so many people were a part of it.
