American School of Doha Hoops of Hope

Students hold first ‘Hoops of Hope’

Students at the American School of Doha (ASD) hosted their first “Hoops of Hope” event yesterday to raise awareness about the plight of African children who have been orphaned by HIV/Aids.

Students were inspired by the speech of the Hoops of Hope founder during last year’s Global Issues Conference that was hosted by ASD. Hoops of Hope was started in 2004 by 10-year-old Austin Gutwein, who wanted to raise funds for the more than 15mn children who, by UN estimates, have been orphaned by HIV/Aids.

Basketball is one of the key activities of American student life, which makes Hoops of Hope, an event where students raise money by having people sponsor them for making a successful basketball throw, appropriate since this charity works specifically to help children who have been affected by HIV/Aids.

Close to 60 high school students rallied towards the organisers’ goal of raising about QR3,000 making the event a success. Organisers and faculty hope that this will become an annual tradition at ASD.