Hosea Givan, Sr. and
Cecil Hollar, Jr.
Founders of the Hollis Biddies (youth featured is Bruce Bishop)
Carter and Van Gundy
Hosea (left) with native Queens rapper LL Cool J (right) at President Clinton's
Youth Summit in D.C.
Click on picture to enlarge.
The 2003 season was dedicated to former Hollis Biddies player and
coach,
Jason Mizell AKA
Jam Master Jay.
Click on picture to enlarge.
2003 Buttah Wilson and 2002 & 2003 Sportsmanship Winner
Justin Newton
Hollis Biddies Steppers
| HISTORY
I Love Our Youth Inc., a not-for-profit 501c3 organization created to uplift young people, was founded by Hosea James Givan II. The vision of this organization was primarily inspired by the Hollis Biddy Basketball League. In 1971, Hosea Givan, Sr. founded the program in an effort to present a positive alternative for boys and girls in Southeast Queens. After coaching two seasons in the East Harlem Biddy Basketball League, Hosea Givan Sr. and Cecil Hollar, Jr., both IBM employees at the time, created the Queens program. They included not only a basketball league, but cheerleading and a double dutch program as well in order to offer both boys and girls an alternative to drugs and violence. The program was originally held at Andrew Jackson High School, but soon moved to JHS 192. During this approximately 10-year phase of the Hollis Biddy Basketball League, over one thousand youngsters benefited from involvement with the league.
In 1993, Hosea J. Givan, II resurrected his father's program by creating and incorporating the organization, I Love Our Youth, Inc. (ILOY). ILOY began operating programs, including the Hollis Biddies Basketball League, in 1994. The fall of 2006 was the 13th season of the program being offered at PS 118 in the Hollis section of Queens. The program has remained a constant at this school despite three changes in school principals.
In the fall of 1994, the ILOY Saturday program's Give-N-Live class organized The Institute for Community Self-improvement and Civic Responsibility in order to implement programs for community self improvement and to promote a greater sense of civic responsibility. 1-800-GIVE BACK is the number utilized to help recruit volunteers to work with youth programs throughout the country.
In 1998, ILOY began providing services at a second site, JHS 275 in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn. JHS 275 is the home of the Police Athletic League (PAL) Brownsville Beacon Center. PAL has contracted with ILOY to operate a Saturday program including a Biddy Basketball League at this school's Beacon program.
In 2000 I Love Our Youth, Inc. received a proclamation from Mayor Rudy
Guliani. On MLK, Dr. Day in 2003, the Hollis Biddies performed at half
time of the NY Knicks vs. Miami Heat at Madison Square Garden.
MISSION
As an organization created to uplift young people, ILOY strives to provide good role models, positive and challenging youth activities, and a mechanism for strengthening communities through volunteerism. The message is one of building character and responsibility in youth and parents alike, through love, communal effort and the spirit of mutual support. ILOY accepts the challenge of serving as an anchor for future generations. Innovative programs are aimed at reversing the effects of absentee fathers and negative role models. Programs and activities strive to promote and inspire: leadership, self-esteem, love and understanding; collective and individual responsibility; and investment in the community by "giving back".
Hosea James Givan II, Chair
Hosea Givan is Chair of the Board of Directors and Founder of I Love Our Youth. He is a native of Hollis, Queens, now resides in Long Island, NY. He holds a BA in Public Administration from Drake University, MS in Education from Long Island University and a Masters in Urban Ministry from Alliance Theological Seminary. While pursuing his first Masters degree, Hosea worked as the Youth Coordinator for the Hicksville Youth Council. In 1986-87 he taught learning disabled and emotionally disturbed elementary and became a NYS certified guidance counselor in 1988.
In 1990, he took a two year leave of absence from education to serve as the Executive Director of the NYS Black and Puerto Rican Legislative Caucus in Albany, NY. He served in a voluntary capacity as the Executive Director of the Yes to Success Sports Foundation. Mr. Givan also held the position of Outreach Officer with the Chase Manhattan Bank Community Development division. In 1993, he founded I Love Our Youth, Inc. In 1994, Mr. Givan was the architect and first Commissioner of the Nike Swoosh All Metro Basketball Tournament that serviced over 1,500 young people in Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the Bronx. Currently, he is the Dean at P.S. 118 in Hollis, Queens and a licensed to Baptist minister. He is a life-member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.
OTHER BOARD MEMBERS
Treasurer, Samuel Hercules, JD.,CPA; Secretary, James Coursey, Member, Dr. Joel Bruce Fieldman; Member, Det. Flora Krind; Member, Milton Carter; Member, Dr. Mitchell Efros; Member, Donald Hazelton, Esq.; Member, Rachel Cheeks-Givan; and Member, Dr. Gerald M. Givan
Volunteer Staff
Reginald Denis, Basketball Instructor and Coach
James Coursey, 16 & under Coach
Oswald Stubbs, 8th Grade Coach
Donald Francois, Community Affairs/Marketing Consultant and 7th Grade Coach
Hosea J. Givan II, 5th/6th Grade Coach
Tim O'Connell, 5th Grade Coach
Georgia McCarthy, 5th Grade
Mahdi Thomas, 5th Grade Coach
Charles Thomas, 5th Grade Coach
Dominick Jenkins, 4th Grade Coach
Tremaine "Butch" Brown, 3rd Grade Coach
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