On March 19, all EMU students and community members over the age of 16 are welcome at EMU Rec/IM to play wheelchair basketball. 

The idea behind the event comes from one of the club’s founding members, Kelly Zorn. Before transferring to Eastern Michigan University, Zorn was a student at Michigan State University. While attending Michigan State University, she was also a member of MSU’s Adaptive Sports & Rec Club and befriended the club’s founder, Piotr Pasik.

“I reached out to the founder of their club, his name is Piotr, to see if he could let us borrow the sports wheelchairs that his club has,” Zorn said. “He already wanted to do an event with us and help us out, so I just Facetimed him and we talked about what we wanted to do.”

Kaitlyn Healey, another founder of EMU’s Adaptive Sports Club, helped organize the event as well. Healy emphasized the importance of sending a message of inclusion in sports.

“The club is an opportunity to provide inclusion for people with physical disabilities to be able to play sports and have fun,” Healey said. “It’s just another outlet for them to be able to move their bodies around and have fun with other people in the community that are similar to them but also with people that don’t have disabilities.”

Heather Silander is the faculty advisor of the Adaptive Sports Club. This will be the first basketball game that the club has planned and is sponsored by the Department of Diversity and Community Involvement.

“The money from the Department of Diversity and Community Involvement is covering free parking, first come first serve, and free guest passes to enter the Rec,” Silander said. 

MSU’s Adaptive Sports & Rec Club will be providing the wheelchairs needed for the game.

“Even if someone is in a wheelchair, they can transfer out of their daily wheelchair and try out a sports wheelchair,” Silander said. “A sport wheelchair is differently made with the level of gravity to the way the wheels are turned.”

The wheelchair basketball event will be held on March 19, from 12p.m to 2 p.m. Registration is required to attend and those interested in participating can fill out the Google form here EMU Wheelchair Basketball Event RSVP. 

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