Thursday, October 1, 2026
73 ° Clear
73 ° Clear
Less than a week after microbursts battered parts of West Philadelphia, children returned to Rufus Williams Court at Cobbs Creek Park Thursday as the Sixers Youth Foundation tipped off the 2026 Jr. 76ers Summer Hoops Tour with a basketball skills clinic focused on fitness, teamwork and mentorship.
Youth from the Youth Mentoring Partnership spent the morning with members of the Sixers Youth Foundation, mascot Franklin the Dog, the 76ers Entertainment Teams and former Sixer Marc Jackson, participating in basketball drills, trivia, games and teamwork exercises alongside mentors.
“One out of three youths in America grows up without having mentorship,” Jackson said. “So we're partnering together to promote wellness, great sportsmanship, and just being active, because [with] those combinations, anything is possible.”
“This is incredible for me because I am a Philadelphia native. I was born and raised here. Pretty much every outdoor court in Philadelphia, I grew up playing on. It helped build the foundation of the grit and hard work ethic that I've had my entire life.”
The Youth Mentoring Partnership, a first-year grantee partner of the Sixers Youth Foundation, works throughout Greater Philadelphia to provide mentorship and opportunities to some of the region's most vulnerable and underserved communities.
Through their partnership with the Sixers Youth Foundation, including this summer basketball clinic, they have worked to build opportunities for youth to create meaningful connections with each other and with role models.
“This is great for the kids,” said Alex Penman, program director for the Youth Mentoring Partnership. “The [Sixers Youth] Foundation has been, not just a grantee donating money that's allowing us to hire better quality and more coaches in the area, but it's giving our kids exposure, and it's a lot of fun.”
A week before the event, sections of West and South Philadelphia were hit by a series of microbursts, felling trees across neighborhoods, including at Cobbs Creek Park. Less than a week later, Rufus Williams Court was clear once again and local children were back at play, experiencing the best of summer.
“Mother Nature always tests us, but we've always prevailed,” Jackson said. “Listen, a lot of storms came through, knocked down a lot of trees. My property's been hit with the trees all over the place; we’re talking about big trees. So to see this court be wide open, cleared of all debris, giving these kids an opportunity, a place to play, and just be free and have some fun and get a great mentorship lesson from not just from the [Sixers] Youth Foundation but YMP, a youth mentorship program, it's just bringing hope to these kids.”
For more information on the Youth Mentoring Partnership, visit youthmp.org. For upcoming events and more information on the Sixers Youth Foundation, visit sixersyouthfoundation.org.
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