The YMCA of Roanoke Valley presents its 84th annual Father, Son & Family Banquet on Saturday, April 9, with a new added dimension a 3-on-3 basketball tournament presented by TWIN HOOPS.
The tournament is geared towards co-ed, middle schoolers in 6-8th grade and will take place on Saturday, April 9, from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon at Lucy Addison Middle School. Registration at $10 per player is open to the public at The YMCA Express Gainsboro. Walk-ins the day of the tournament will be accepted, but early registration is encouraged. Teams may have up to 4 players if they want to substitute. TWIN HOOPS founders, Damon and Ramon Williams, will present the winning team with medals.
From 4:00 – 6:30 p.m., the Y will host its annual banquet with dinner and family fun at Lucy Addison Middle School. Tickets and table sponsorships are currently on sale at the YMCA Express at Gainsboro, at 108 Orange Ave, N.W.
Now in its 84th year, The Father, Son & Family Banquet is the YMCA of Roanoke Valley’s longest, continuously running program. This annual event is not only a long-standing tradition celebrating families; it is also an event that showcases the YMCA’s role in Roanoke history.
L.A. Lee, the first director of the William A. Hunton Branch YMCA, initiated the first Father-Son Banquet in 1932, (Roanoke’s YMCA for African Americans) only black residents attended the first banquets, only 10 or so boys and a few fathers came to the first banquet, held upstairs in the dining room at the Dumas Hotel in Roanoke with LA. Lee addressing it.
The old Hunton YMCA played a large part in the lives of some young black Roanokers in the first half of the 20th century.
“The Y was the only thing we had,” recalled longtime YMCA employee Louis Brown in a story about his retirement in 2003. “It kept us out of trouble, and it kept some of us alive.” Old news stories speak of pool and ping-pong tables, and a library in the basement, which was the only library blacks in the city could check out books. The Hunton Y later moved to Gainsboro Road and Patton Ave. (both buildings are now gone).
With segregation at YMCAs ending in 1964, African Americans in Roanoke were able to use the Central YMCA downtown. The banquet, which began as a Hunton Y tradition, has evolved over the years opening its doors to all races and welcoming mothers and daughters.
From its humble beginning with just a dozen or so in attendance, the Father, Son & Family event is now attended by more than 300 people each year, including Roanoke City officials. The event has featured keynote speakers, music and entertainment by local churches and youth groups. In 2012, the Y presented the “A.L. Holland Heart of a Father Award” to honor A.L. Holland, who had attended every banquet since the first in 1932, save for a few when he served in the Army in World War II. Each year the award is given to an outstanding role model in our community. In addition, Hamlar-Curtis Funeral Homes presents awards to the oldest father-son pair, the youngest son, the father accompanied by the most sons and a father-son look-alike contest. James Bethel presents similar awards to mothers and daughters in attendance.
