Tag: Heritage High School

Invited to play basketball in Italy, Adiya Jones needs community support

By Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News

TULALIP – Former Heritage High School Lady Hawk and Tulalip tribal member Adiya Jones is joining the ranks of Tulalip athletes who are showcasing their skills internationally. Jones, a junior at La Connor High School, has her sights set on Italian basketball courts, where she hopes to join an elite group of players from across the globe, to compete and test their skills while representing their countries. The only thing that can stop her isn’t fear, it’s fundraising.

Jones was nominated to join Team USA, which consists of 12 other girls selected from across the United States, by a coach who saw her play.

To help her raise the $4,000 needed by March 2, Jones has created a fundly.com account, which works like Gofundme, where people can donate funds to her cause or benefit, in Jones’s case, her trip to Italy.

The money she raises will pay for hotels and meals as Jones travels around Italy with Team USA. To guarantee her slot on the team, Jones is using the same type of dedication she shows on the court to fundraise as much as she can before the deadline. In addition to her fundly.com account she has created a lottery board where you can purchase one or more squares for a fee. If you choose the wining square number you win half the money the board generated.

“I need to have half the money by a certain date. I plan to use some of my Christmas bonus money to help. The Tribe is also going to help with matching funds I raise,” said Jones, who is also planning a spaghetti feed with the help of her grandmother to raise more funds. Jones will also be participating in the annual Tulalip Tribes All Native Thanksgiving Basketball Tournament, held November 28-30, to test and sharpen her court skills and hopefully do a little fundraising.

“I am excited but also nervous. Once we started the board I started to get really nervous, like, this is it,” said Jones about her anxiousness to travel abroad for the first time by herself.

Jones, who has aspirations to play basketball at Washington State University, said, “I am looking forward to meeting new people. Just the experience of getting to play basketball with a whole new team, and learning some new moves and about the culture is going to be amazing.”

To support Adiya’s fundraising attempts, please visit her fundly.com account at http://fundly.com/my-trip-to-italy.

Brandi N. Montreuil: 360-913-5402; bmontreuil@tulalipnews.com