With all the focus on the Jose Calderon / TJ Ford great switcheroo, I thought I’d go in a different direction with the Raptors.

On Monday I had the privilege of hanging out with 25 grade five students, along with Sam Mitchell and his dedicated children’s charity team, “The SaMarc Dream and Achieve Foundation.”

Sam and his partner Steven Conville, the Portfolio Manager and Investment Advisor at Blackmont Capital, have begun to establish the Canadian arm of his charity that originated in Atlanta. The event was all about children hanging out with Sam and his staff, going through basic drills at the Raptors’ practice facility.

The kids came from an “at risk” school, but you would never know. They were as friendly and polite as any child I have encountered. In fact, considering they were on a field trip hanging out at the rather impressive 9th floor Blackmont boardroom, being fed copious amounts of food, followed by multiple group pictures-- the kids couldn’t have been better behaved.

Back to Sam Mitchell. He was exactly how you would think him to be around these kids. Barking out commands like a drill sergeant, putting the rest of his staff on the spot, Sam was the portrait of an old-school coach. Of course, just when you thought he was actually taking the event seriously, he would break out into a grin and do his best to give each child encouragement while trying to teach them the fundamentals of the game.

After about an hour of drills, the kids were able to break off and just shoot the ball at will at one of six different baskets. What struck me was that the kids weren’t interested staying close to Sam trying to curry favour with the head coach. It wasn’t that they weren’t interested or in awe of him, rather they just loved to play basketball. They just wanted to run around and take impossible shots at nets that must have seemed forever away. They were having more fun than most adults could ever have on a basketball court. Sam, Steve Conville, and everyone from both Blackmont Capital and The SaMarc Dream and Achieve Foundation should be proud of themselves.

These sorts of events don’t get the attention they deserve, but I won’t go on a moralistic rant about it. Little slices like this are difficult to sell to the masses, but I was glad to be a part of it.

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