Effecting Change

On Saturday, June 4, 2020, following the death of George Floyd and less than a week after the entity was founded, upwards of 400 coaches – including 10 from Collegiate – as well as supporters of the cause convened at the Arthur Ashe Monument for a peaceful protest, then walked to the Robert E. Lee Statue 1.3 miles away.

Over the ensuing months, 804 Coaches conducted a series of events including Town Hall Zooms among basketball teams from several area schools (including Collegiate) about race and equality so that players could learn about each other’s journeys; community nights at the Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club in Church Hill with dinner, speakers, and mentorship; and special programs celebrating Black History Month and the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“We wanted this to be a group that’s authentic to its core,” said Del Harris, who’s in his sixth year as Collegiate’s boys varsity basketball coach and an 804 Coaches for Change board member. “We wanted this to be about action.”
    
This past summer, much of the organization’s action involved providing assistance to several inner city camps (including one directed by former Virginia Union player Ray Neblett at Pine Camp on Old Brook Road) and projects including Trusted Legacy (run by Tyrese Rice, former L.C. Bird and Boston College star), Befriend (an initiative whose mission is to “connect people across the city to meet and forge new relationships by uniting through compassion”), and the Richmond Police Athletic League, which held a bookbag drive in Creighton Court and Fairfield Court.

“We supported other people doing good,” Harris said. “We showed up. We were motivational speakers. We taught a little basketball, but it was really about support, leadership, and mentorship.”

Next up is the inaugural 804 Coaches for Change Community Classic, a three-day event intended to fill the void left by the discontinuation of the Richmond Times-Dispatch Invitational Tournament, for years a holiday-season staple in Central Virginia.

“We’re trying to inspire change,” Harris said. “We’re trying to inspire unity and bring awareness that we still have a long way to go with social justice and racial equality. We’re taking baby steps to create change and make progress.”

On December 21, coaches and players from the 16 participating schools will convene at St. Christopher’s for a community meal.

“It’s a chance to unite for fellowship,” Harris said. “We’ll hear from students about inspiring change. You can’t inspire change unless you bring people together and address it.”

All games will be played at Henrico High School. There will be four girls games December 22 and four boys games the next day. Collegiate meets Central Region powerhouse Varina in the nightcap December 23.

At halftime of each game, the 804 Coaches organization will honor teachers and bus drivers from the participating schools as well as health care workers, members of the military, and first responders.

When Harris speaks of the efforts of the 804 Coaches group effecting change, what actually does he mean?

"Awareness,” he said. “As much as we are different, we are the same. In order to have a true community feel, you have to put yourself in somebody else’s shoes.  We have teams from Henrico, Chesterfield, Richmond, public schools, private schools, boys, girls. We’re going to break bread together and have fellowship together and learn more about each other. 

“It’s very simple to learn about each other. You can disagree on things, but you can also be open-minded and have a calm, civil discussion. You first have to understand that there are problems, there are inequalities, there are differences. This is just one thing that we’re doing. Once we’ve done this for the winter, we’ll move on to the next thing.”
  
What’s the ultimate goal? 

“To consistently improve,” he said. “There is no finish line. That’s any organization that’s really trying to pursue change. It’s not like we won the Super Bowl. It’s something that has to continually go on. There must be awareness and understanding. That’s what’s really important. 

“Accept people for their differences and be able to work together to have positive solutions, positive understanding, positive feedback. That’s the big goal: to keep moving forward. 

“Our group is very diverse. It’s public school, private school. It’s non-profit. It’s black. It’s white. It’s male. It’s female. It’s the real world.”
  ~Weldon Bradshaw