All-star hoops raise funds to fight cancer

The West Island Lakers Basketball Association will present its ninth annual Sian Bradwell-West Island Lakers all-star festival at John Rennie High School in Pointe Claire this weekend. After a slate of regularly scheduled house-league games on Saturday, eight boys’ and girls’ all-star games from novice to juvenile will unfold on Sunday. Players will be selected not necessarily on how well they have performed on the court this season, but more on attitude, sportsmanship and dedication. Each age category will feature a West vs. East game, with players donning special uniforms for this one occasion.

The weekend will also serve as a fundraiser. All money to be raised through the canteen, product sales, prize raffles and donations during Saturday's regular house-league games and Sunday's all-star matches will go towards the Sian Bradwell Fund, a volunteer-based organization that raises money for the benefit of children with cancer at the Montreal Children’s Hospital. A celebrity match will also take place on Sunday afternoon. “All the wonderful volunteers are doing a wonderful job of continuing to raise funds for the oncology department in general, although last year we bought a $90,000 operating table for the neurosurgery department. It not only helps children with brain tumours but lots of other children with neurological disorders benefit as well,” said Sharon Bradwell, who who brainstormed the idea of starting the foundation with husband Ken after their daughter Sian died of a rare form of cancer when she was only 17 months old. For more information on this weekend’s event, go to www.wilba2009.blogspot.com.