NBA’s Portia Fultz Archer Among a Select Group Being Honored by the Riverside Hawks

2022 Gala to be held in December

NEW YORK, Oct. 25, 2022 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — The 61-year-old Riverside Hawks organization, one of the nation’s leading athletic-academic programs, will hold its 2022 Gala celebration on December 13th at the Mandarin Oriental, 80 Columbus Circle, NYC, (6:30 pm reception, 7:30 pm dinner & program).

This year’s honorees include Portia Fultz Archer, the first woman, and the first Black to hold the newly created position of COO, with the NBA G League. The Chicago native and Columbia University Business School graduate joins a list of notables that are also being honored including fellow Columbia Business School graduate, Meredith Marshall, founder of BRP Companies a leading real estate development and investment organization. This year the Hawks are inducting Anthony Hargraves into their Hall of Fame. Mr. Hargraves is a Riverside Hawks alumnus who went on to play Division 1 basketball at Iona College and was named Associated Press Academic All-American in 1985. Mr. Hargraves, currently the Hawks Program Director, is being recognized with this honor for his 40-year commitment to the Hawks program. The Hawks’ Coach of the Year honoree is Karriem Memminger. Mr. Memminger has been an important figure at Riverside, responsible for coaching sensational young players like the outstanding 6-foot-3 guard from Harlem, Cam Estevez, who will be attending the University of Rhode Island next year to play for the Rams. This year’s Corporate Citizenship Award will go to Ardian, a global leader in investment and asset management, and a generous supporter and friend of the Riverside Hawks, and other charitable organization across the world.

The Riverside Hawks has provided opportunities to hundreds of gifted young athletes to attend prestigious private high schools and some of the nation’s leading universities and colleges. Participation begins at age 5 with the tiny tots enrolled in the Hawks in Training program, a no-nonsense initiative that prepares them emotionally and physically. The program includes both boys’ and girls’ teams, with players as young as 8 and 9, competing in AAU national finals. This year’s Riverside Hawks 3rd grade AAU National Championsare among those being honored at the 2022 Gala.

In addition to mentorship and coaching, the Riverside Hawks program brings families and communities together; provides initiatives that enrich a child’s learning experience, including free tutoring that prepares them for standardized testing for both high school and college acceptance. The program mixes academics and basketball to ensure student participants excel at both and gives them the tools needed to achieve both life and career success. Over the years, the program has earned bragging rights with impressive outcomes, and this year is no different:

• 100% high school graduation among students in 2022
• 100% of 2022 high school graduates have been accepted into college
• Since 2020 Riverside Hawks students have received over $5 million in college scholarships and grants (over 4-years) and over $550K in prep-school scholarships
• The program has also provided over $125K in high school scholarships to its students over the last 24-years.

These accomplishments are made possible by the commitment of partners and donors who continue to give generously and through the effort of a supportive board that each year makes their central fundraising Gala, an affair to remember.

Maurice Dubois, CBS-2 News co-anchor, reprises his role hosting the event once again this year.

For tickets and more information on the Riverside Hawks, CLICK HERE.

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About Riverside Hawks

Since its founding by the Riverside Church in 1961, the Riverside Hawks have been a staple program in the Harlem community. Riverside Hawks provide an opportunity for youth to use basketball as a vehicle to improve academic outcomes and in turn, improve career prospects. The Riverside Hawks Board and The Riverside Church leaders have continued to fortify the program and provide the infrastructure and resources that are used to support the academic needs of our male and female student-athletes, while also offering excellent basketball training. In recent years, the Hawks has now significantly expanded its programming to support not only its student elite teams, but any young person from the local community.

Media Contact

Sam Mattingly, SMC Solutions, 1 917-331-9375, [email protected]

Chris Snell, Riverside Hawks, 917-554-0549, [email protected]

 

SOURCE Riverside Hawks

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