Celebrity basketball game brings community together to curb violence

 

SOUTH BEND, Ind.— A basketball event Saturday brought the community together with the goal of curbing the violence in South Bend.

“We have a young man who is putting himself out, in front of his peers, showing himself as the leader, and saying ‘hey, we need to do something different here in South Bend,’” said South Bend Common Council Member Henry Davis Jr. “And I support that.”

That young man is Xavier Pittman, who organized the 574 celebrity stop the violence basketball game.

“People don’t really come together like this,” Pittman said.

Saturday, two teams went head-to-head on the court, but came together to spread a message of anti-violence.

“There’s a lot of deaths going on, it’s hitting close to home. We just want to get everybody on one court,” Pittman said.

The event offered hours of family fun—while uplifting community celebrities.

“You just got the intercity celebrities,” Pittman said. “Everybody that’s doing something right now.”

“Xavier has asked local ball players here, that are celebrities to these younger kids, to participate in the actions of uplifting this city,” Davis said.

Pittman plans to put to put on the event again this year.