Nearly day since seventh grade, Daniel Fernandez spent several hours playing basketball at the Cortez Recreation Center.
When Fernandez’s mother, Yolanda Escobell, lost her job earlier this year, however, the Montezuma-Cortez High School freshman’s routine appeared to be in jeopardy.
Then, the Friends of Recreation stepped in.
A local organization that provides rec center scholarships to low-income families, Friends of Recreation has been helped families like Fernandez’s since about 2005.
“The Friends of Recreation is an organization that seeks to provide low-income families with an opportunity to utilize the rec center’s facilities,” said the organization’s board president, Rayna Hale. “We help families with financial needs.”
Money for scholarships is generated by fundraisers that include a yearly raffle and the Cortez Burst Triathlon. Scholarships are granted on a six-month basis, after which families must wait at least one year to reapply.
“Since I began working with the Friends of Recreation in 2011, we’re been able to add two or three new families every month,” said organization member Monica Palmquist. “Scholarships have benefited numerous families in our community.”
When asked about the benefits that her family has received from its Friends of Recreation Scholarship, Escobell pointed to the success of Fernandez, who played a key role M-CHS’s junior varsity basketball team and made the school’s honor role.
“When Daniel was in middle school, he was doing stuff on the street and getting in trouble,” said Escobell through a translator. “The moment that he came to the rec center, his grades have increased and his health has improved.”
“The rec center helps me prepare during basketball season and during the summer,” said Fernandez, who said that he would like to one day play college basketball. “It helps me stay in good shape and stay healthy.”
As for the Friends of Recreation’s future, Palmquist and Hale agreed that there is no end in site, while expressing hope that the organization will continue growing.
To obtain more information on the Friends of Recreation or to pick up a scholarship application, stop by the front desk of the Cortez Recreation Center.
