In 1998, a fledgling non-profit contacted me about photographic services for their star-studded gala in New York City. So began a 25-year relationship with the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health.
My career as a sports photojournalist provided me with the opportunity to photograph Arthur Ashe at the first Arthur Ashe day on August 30, 1992, at the US Open. Little did I know that it would be my only opportunity. Just three months prior, he had announced his diagnosis with AIDS. His death on February 6, 1993, was a shock. At the time, I did not know that he had created the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health on December 3, 1992, in that short window between that magical day and his death.
When I first met Ruth Browne, the first executive director of the institute, I immediately fell in love with the Institute’s mission and message. I was hired to document the Institute’s gala, Sportsball 1998, at one of New York City’s premier gala locations, The Waldorf Astoria. The event was a cacophony of who’s who in the sporting and medical communities. There were personal friends of Arthur, there were doctors from nearly every institution, and there were world-class athletes gathering to bring Ashe’s dream of universal healthcare for all people.
At my first Sportsball, I met Jackie Joyner-Kersee, named the greatest female athlete of the 20th century. She said Arthur’s grace taught her so much growing up. George Foreman took a boxing stance for me before joining Tommy “The Hit Man” Hearns, Olympian Spencer Haywood, and Dr. Edgar Mandeville in a talk about Arthur. It was an extraordinary evening.
It continued every year. There was the surreal moment photographing Julius Erving shooting miniature basketballs against another attendee at Sportsball 1999, and then meeting honorees Danny Glover and Dianne Carroll. At Sportsball 2000, I had the opportunity to tell honoree Henry Aaron that watching him hit his 715th home run in person as a 15-year-old led me to sports photography. The list is long and full of luminaries.
And the reason for this star-studded list? The simple answer was the genius of Arthur Ashe. He knew that the disproportionate amount of illness and death from preventable diseases in our nation’s multi-ethnic communities was not only caused by inadequate health care delivery, but also by late detection – the result of limited and, too often, culturally inappropriate health education information. His words still grace the homepage of their website.
“To achieve greatness, start where you are, use what you have, and do what you can.”
In 1994, the institute created the Health Science Academy STEM pipeline afterschool program, bringing new opportunities to over 3,000 inner-city students. Boasting a 98 percent college admission rate, most of its students go on to medical school, graduate school, and doctoral programs. In 2020, 14 graduates of HSA and Bishop Loughlin High School earned a total of $5,962,924 in scholarships.
The institute created “Barbershop Talk with Brothers” and “Heart of a Woman” in 1996 within 10 salons in Brooklyn. The program has grown to over 170 barbershops and salons using innovative grassroots strategies to engage men and women to seek health screening and advocate for healthier communities.
Sportsball is a celebration of Arthur’s dream. I’m proud to be a part of it.
LEARN MORE about the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health programs and history….
Sportsball 2024 in photo and words.....
The evening was hosted by Cathleen Trigg-Jones, an Emmy-Award-winning journalist, producer, philanthropist, serial entrepreneur and actress. Dr. Marilyn Fraser, Chief Executive Officer of the Institute, and Brett Wright, Chairman of the Board, joined Ms. Trigg-Jones on stage to discuss the importance of the Institute’s work in health equity.
Dr. Fraser presented the Arthur Ashe Institute Leadership Award to Thomas Halloran, Chief Executive Officer of Fidelis Care; Amir Bassiri, Medicaid Director on behalf of the New York State Department of Health Insurance Programs; and Dr. Jason Lazar, Vice Dean for Education and Chair of the Department of Medical Education at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University. This award is presented to those who are living embodiments of Arthur Ashe’s legacy, dedicating their time, expertise and influence to a cause greater than themselves. The honorees spoke with Dr. Fraser on stage to discuss their work and impact, their relationship with the Institute, and the power of collective work and partnerships between community organizations, government entities, and institutions of learning.
Following the presentation of the awards, Ms. Trigg-Jones introduced Jerome Archer, owner of Platinum Cuts Inc. barbershop and Elaine Richards, owner of Royal Ambiance salon in Brooklyn, who work with the Institute’s community outreach programs to promote health awareness and assistance to their clients as trusted members of their community. Ms. Trigg-Jones also introduced two alumni of the Institute’s Health Science Academy (HSA): Roudjessie Charles, who graduated from HSA in 2017 and is now a manager at the Health Science Academy, and Dr. Joshua McHugh, a 2002 HSA graduate, who is now a physician. With these individuals, Ms. Trigg-Jones discussed the impact that the Institute’s initiatives have had in the Brooklyn community and how the Health Science Academy has influenced the career path of 30 cohorts of students.
Following these conversations, the evening’s auction was hosted by Ottis Anderson, former running back for the New York Giants. A representative of the United States Tennis Association awarded the association’s annual scholarship of $1,968—the year Arthur Ashe won the US Open—to two graduates of the Health Science Academy: Megan Vanzie, Class of 2023, who is majoring in Health Science on a Pre-Physical Therapy track at Howard University, and Kareem Bhaim, Class of 2024, who is enrolled in the Pre-Engineering program at Providence College.
All attendees received complimentary sneakers from Reebok, the evening’s official footwear provider, and additional treats from Clinique, Miss Jessie’s Natural Hair Products, LoMar Farms, and FitBiomics.
