A basketball tournament for young people in Griffith is set to hit the streets on January 22, as a local musician makes his return to town.
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Aduny Takele, part of the "Ballerz Down Under" group, returned to Griffith after a two year stint in Melbourne producing music and videos. With his return, along with his two partners in production, he decided to try and give back to the community he grew up in.
Having grown up in Griffith, he'd seen a lack of youth programs to get young people engaged in the community and has been motivated to start a street basketball tournament to let them know they're not alone.
"I wanted to do my part in any way I can," Mr Takele explained.
"It all started with us making basketball videos and just playing around, we thought this was something people might get really interested in so we thought we'd do a bit of a tournament ... this one will be a bit of a trial run."
He explained that a lack of programs for young people led to them getting distracted and losing focus, sometimes setting them back as they enter the future.
"The goal for the tournament is just to really create a community for the kids in this town. We just really want to let them know that we're here for you guys and we're going to help you out any way we can."
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"Whatever it is you want to do, just be a good person. Even the sort of people that aren't out there as much, we try and find them."
Mr Takele is already keen to see the tournaments take off, should the first experiment be successful. He's hopeful to see it become a regular thing, and says eager young people should 'be excited for the what's next.'
The tournament will kick off on January 22 at Jubilee Park, with a barbecue available for spectators and a run of prizes from sponsor Cartel. Teams are made up of 5, with three on the court and two reserves.
And for those following Mr Takele's musical career, he added that there might be a single and music video drop that evening.
More information is available on the Ballerz Down Under instagram page.
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