Guest: Chris Smalling
Theme: Mentoring Has A Ripple Effect
Host: Kurt Henry
Chris Smalling
Chris Smalling is a son, a father, a husband, a brother, a uncle, a nephew and a mentor. Chris Smalling grew up in the Galloway community and fell in love with the game of basketball as soon as he was introduced to it. As one of six children in the Smalling household, it was difficult for his parents to afford Rep league basketball. As a result, he was unable to join their community team, The Galloway Lancers. He met a lady by the name of Martha Smith who paid his league fees and gave him the opportunity to volunteer at the community centre as a way of paying it forward. Chris Smalling was extremely grateful and vowed that as he got older, he would always give back to his community. Since the age of 16, Smalling has worked in various neighbourhoods throughout Scarborough providing opportunities for youth to participate in athletic activities.
In 2005 he started the Advantage Basketball was founded on the principles of giving back to the community and creating sustainable basketball programs for families in need. Since 2005 Advantage Basketball has helped over 150 student-athletes receive scholarships to play at various institutions such as NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) Division 1 Division II, Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) and Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) levels. Some of our student-athletes have gone on and received their Bachelor and Master’s degrees. Advantage Basketball has proven that their philosophy works and it’s helped to change the narrative of so many young people’s lives. Part of the advantage program is giving back or paying it forward, so many of our former athletes continue to give back to the program by impacting the lives of many young people.
In 2011 Chris Smalling was recognized by the OBA (Ontario Basketball Association) who nominated him for the prestigious Syl Apps award, he went up against over 20,000 other volunteers and mentors and won. The award was presented by Ministry of Health Promotion and Sport Margarett Best.
Chris now holds a position as the Director of Men’s basketball at J. Addison and continues to impact the lives of young people throughout the GTA.
He is most proud of the relationship he has built over the last 25 years and the lives he has impacted
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