To the Editor:

I felt compelled to write this letter to say how truly thankful I am to all the members of the Onset Foursquare Church, the sponsor of my Wareham Junior Basketball Association Team, Division 1 Girls, Sky for the 2016-2017 season.

We had an up and down season, but the girls pulled it together at the end of the year and beat the only undefeated team in our division for the championship! It was an epic win. My sincere appreciation to Assistant Coach Aimee Uhlman and Assistant Coach Hailey Wilcox (my daughter). My Team:  #1, Reign Fernandes; #2, Destiny Barboza; #3, Ashley Monteiro; #4, Sydney Uhlman; #5, Avarey Leconte; #10, Gwen Carpenter; #11, Olivia Nascimento; #12-Aaliyah Pina; #13, Riley Gomes and their families for their unending support.

One of the sponsors and a member of the church, Mrs. Barbara Sullivan, contacted me because she said the church wanted to do something for my team and for the girls to know how special they are. They had prayed for the team each week by saying: “The sky is the limit.” God heard these thoughtful prayers. We were surely blessed.

It all started with awesome invitations that were made for the girls and their families.

I never quite imagined what this “special” night would be nor did I know what was planned. The members of the church surprised the entire team with an amazing banquet. From the time we walked into the door, we were greeted so kindly by all. I was so impressed that the church members had on our team T-shirts, with the colors and team name. They had blue and yellow silverware that were wrapped in napkins and ribbons representing our team colors. The place settings were made by a tangerine drawn craft-fully to look like a “basketball” in a clear cup, with a “SKOR” bar (as the post), and name cards with the girls’ numbers on the “backboard” which indicated, “SKOR….Nothin’ but Net."

A Wareham Week reporter was even at this event.

There were appetizers, “Sky” punch, salad, a delicious baked ziti with sausages and meatballs, garlic bread, and dessert cupcakes with each girls jersey number on them. All Church members waited on each and every one of us and served food and drinks to the team, coaches, and their families an amazing sit-down dinner. The thoughtfulness of this group to present plaques to the coaches, as well as for myself, were totally unexpected and much appreciated. The girls were called up one-by-one by Pastor Gerald Fernandes and were given gift bags with handmade bracelets, which were prayed upon.

This entire Onset Foursquare Church Family went above and beyond any sponsorship that I have ever heard of or been blessed to be a part of in all my 20 plus years (on/off) of coaching basketball.

I give my heartfelt gratitude to all of the church members for their kindness and generosity. I, for one, have never felt so special and for that I will be eternally grateful. I know all of the girls and their families on Team Sky will have this forever etched in their memories.

Skippy Wilcox

Head Coach

Div. 1 Girls Sky