Local Basketball Talent Give Inner-City Girls a Jump Start to Basketball

(EMAILWIRE.COM, November 02, 2006 ) Philadelphia, PA – Sarah Lowe, former star basketball player for Lower Merion High School (’02) and the University of Florida Gators (06’) is taking it to the hoop in a program called Jump Start to Basketball™ at the Shepard Recreation Center in West Philadelphia. Gerald Jordan, a former LA Laker, who grew up playing ball at Shepard, is also lending a hand. Both Lowe and Jordan are giving their tremendous talent and time to introduce inner-city adolescent girls, ages 9 – 11, to basketball. The program, an initiative of The Katie at the Bat Team, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of inner-city youth through enrichment and educational programs in athletics, literacy, health, and the arts., runs though November 16 at the Shepard Recreation Center in West Philadelphia.Jump Start to Basketball (Jump Start) meets Tuesday and Thursday afternoons from 3:30 to 5:30 pm. The first hour includes a healthy snack, homework time and writing of basketball journals; the second hour is devoted to a basketball clinic led by Lowe, with assistance from Jordan, community members and several Lower Merion High School students. The program is free of charge. Underscoring the need for programs that develop skills and self-confidence in young inner-city girls, Jump Start was over- subscribed and had to be capped.“My daughter, Nydira, wanted to play basketball for some time and we couldn’t find a team,” explained Rita Robinson, mother of 4th grader Nydira Miracle Robinson who attends with her 3 cousins. “When the flyer was sent home it was like a gift from God. The girls love the program…its all they talk about.” “We are so lucky to be able to have someone of Sarah Lowe’s energy and leadership skills teach these girls basketball,” said Lisa S. Hoffstein, President and Founder of The Katie at the Bat Team. “She is a true civic-scholar-athlete and an ideal role model for girls.” She added, “Gerald Jordan’s daughter is participating and it is so exciting to have him help out …. I have known him for many years and he is very devoted to giving back to the community.”After excelling as team captain of the Lower Merion Aces Girl’s Basketball team where she was considered the female equivalent of Kobe Bryant, Lowe went on to be a 3-time captain of the University of Florida Gators women’s basketball team and was UF’s nominee for the 2006 NCAA Woman of the Year . She was a 2005 Rhodes Scholar finalist and will travel to Costa Rica this February for 10 months on a Fulbright cultural relations research study grant.About The Katie at the Bat TeamKAB was started this past spring by Merion Station resident Lisa Hoffstein. Its first project was the funding of a girls softball team at the Friere Charter School in center city Philadelphia. The Katie at the Bat Team is creating new sports teams and athletic programs throughout Philadelphia, primarily targeting low-income school age girls. KAB aims to raise the consciousness of young females and their families on the benefits of athletics and physical fitness. The Katie at the Bat Team promotes the trio: Healthy body. Healthy mind. Healthy soul. By providing youngsters with new opportunities and improved levels of support, quality of life will naturally result with the positive outcomes being endless. Jump Start to Basketball™ is funded in part by the Citizens Bank Foundation and the Maxwell Strawbridge Charitable Trust.For further information please contact Lisa S. Hoffstein at 610-667-5737 or visit www.katieatthebatteam.org. For more details about Sarah Lowe please visit: www.gatorzone.com/basketball/women/bios.php?year=2002&bio=lowe.html. Media Contact: Lisa Hoffstein 610-667-5737 (o) 610-202-8735 (cell) or e-mail LisaSHoff@aol.com or Ilene Miller 610-668-0138 (office) 610-304-7451 (cell) meymil@comcast.net

Lisa S. Hoffstein

LisaSHoff@aol.com